On December 5-6, 2024, the 14th edition of the Business of IP Asia Forum (BIP Asia), jointly organized by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (HKSAR Government) and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), was held successfully at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Featuring a mix of forums, exhibitions, and other activities, the event brought together over 100 prominent speakers worldwide, including intellectual property (IP) experts, industry leaders, and investors, and attracted more than 3,000 participants from 36 countries and regions.
The vigorous development of IP not only stimulates innovation but also drives high-quality economic growth. The 14th BIP ASIA Forum, themed “Reimagining IP for Impact and Growth,” aimed to explore the role of IP in fostering innovation, entrepreneurship, and promoting global economic growth and social development.
Opening Ceremony
On the morning of December 5, the opening session of the 14th BIP ASIA Forum kicked off. Mr. Chan Kwok-ki, Chief Secretary for Administration of the HKSAR, Mr. Peter Lam, Chairman of the HKTDC, and Mr. Hu Wenhui, Deputy Commissioner of the China National Intellectual Property Administration, attended the opening ceremony and delivered speeches.
In his welcome speech, Mr. Peter Lam said: “Hong Kong is a creative place and our films, TV shows, music, fashion and art are known worldwide. Hong Kong is also a place of scientific and technological innovation. The Global Innovation Index 2024 by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) ranked the Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou science and technology cluster second globally for the fifth consecutive year. Hong Kong is an international trading and investment centre, so we need to provide a free and fair environment in which to do business. It is in our very interest to protect IP rights. The Business of IP Asia Forum brings together IP professionals and business leaders from all over the world to discuss the latest developments in the IP world and to explore collaboration opportunities.”
Mr. Chan Kwok-ki stated in his opening remarks: “Our strategy for ensuring Hong Kong's rise as a regional IP trading leader is built on two key pillars. First, enhancing IP infrastructure. We will update the Copyright Ordinance and revamp the registered design regime to meet demand, today and tomorrow. Legislative amendments will also be proposed to streamline IP litigation, allowing our courts to manage such cases more effectively. Second, we are building an IP-savvy workforce. Our Intellectual Property Department will work with the Qualifications Framework Secretariat to develop IP training materials for 23 industries. It will also advance our plans to introduce regulatory arrangements for local patent agents.”
Mr. Hu Wenhui highlighted CNIPA's latest progress in promoting the rule of law, creation, protection, utilization, and international cooperation in IP. He expressed CNIPA's continued support for HKSAR's innovation-driven development and anticipated that HKSAR would better integrate into the country's overall development and play an increasingly significant role in building China into a strong IP powerhouse.
Policy Dialogues
IP is the foundation of the innovation ecosystem with potential to reshape the business landscape and society as a whole. The “Policy Dialogue – Reimagining IP for Impact and Growth” session of the BIP Asia Forum was moderated by Prof Kenny Wong, Chairman of the Intellectual Property Committee of the Law Society of Hong Kong and featured insights from industry leaders worldwide. Wang Binying, Deputy Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization, and Xaysomphet Norasingh, Chairman of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Working Group on Intellectual Property Cooperation participated in the dialogue.
Wang Binying said: “Global IP filings have shown mixed results in 2023. These figures prove that there is a continued willingness of investment in IP, and innovative movement worldwide in general. It also posed a question: how do we keep faster development and change downsides into positives? An important way to improve this trend is to do promote IP financing, in particular, financing high-risk, high-potential startups and emerging technologies.”
Plenary Sessions
In today’s competitive business landscape, leveraging IP has become essential for driving innovation, building brand value, and creating new revenue streams. On the morning of December 5, Michael Moriarty, Managing Director of Hong Kong Disneyland Resort; Guy Riddell, Managing Director of Peninsula Merchandising Limited; and Dr. Na Wei, Senior Director of IP Licensing at Xiaomi delivered speeches in the Plenary Session titled “Unlocking Business Success with IPs”. This headline session covers how to effectively combine brand, IP, and technology to drive sustainable business growth, explore new business opportunities and enhance the customer experience.
Dr. Na Wei highlighted the importance of collaboration between different IP owners. “One smartphone may contain more than 200,000 patents. It’s not something that one company can do on its own, so that’s why collaboration is very necessary. We need to work with many other patent owners on acquiring or securing their licenses, and we also license our own patents to them. It’s in that way that these kind of high-density patent products can be made possible.”
The Forum featured two Plenary Sessions on December 6. “Reimagining Content IP” was moderated by Mr. Chee-Sing Chan, Head of Content of Edelman in the morning. Mr. Jake Hwang, Chief Manager, Story IP Business at Kakao Entertainment Corp, renowned for his experience with popular web novels and comics IP projects such as What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim, Business Proposal, and Run On, shared insights on IP related to popular Korean dramas, webcomics, and web novels at the forum. He said: “In terms of creating original IPs and where we invest our money, we don’t see things in short-term income. We are trying to see things on a more long-term basis, because we don’t know which IPs will be successful.”
In the afternoon, “Responsibility of AI: Ethics, Inclusion, Impact”, featuring Theodora Lau, Founder of Unconventional Ventures, focused on ethical issues related to AI. This session was moderated by Mr. Neil Tan, Chairman of the Artificial Intelligence Association of Hong Kong.
Breakout Sessions
Starting from the afternoon of December 5, a series of breakout sessions were held. "IP Valuation and Financing" featured Martin Brassell, Co-founder and CEO of Inngot Limited; Roland Emmans, Head of Technology & Growth Lending at HSBC UK Bank Plc; and Nicolas Konialidis, Asia Director and Technical Director of the Business Valuation Board (BVB) at International Valuations Standards Council (IVSC). This session explored various IP valuation methods and the potential of IPs as financing tools for businesses.
Mr. Martin Brassell said: “As valuers, we have to exercise our professional judgement, subject the inputs that we’re given to professional scrutiny, and do an inordinate amount of background research in order to put the information we’re being given into a sensible, commercial, and, if necessary, IP landscape context.”
The afternoon session on December 6 “IPHatch Asia – The New Horizons in IP” was jointly organized by the HKSAR Government, HKTDC and Piece Future. The session focused on forward-looking IP strategies and visions, sharing strategies on how to leverage IP to drive sustainable growth and significant innovation. The session featured Mr. Yoshinori Nakagawa, IP Senior Expert of Panasonic IP Management Co., Limited; Dr. Jari Vaario, Head of Asia IPR Business Development of Nokia Technologies; Mr. Seiichi Matsumoto, Senior Manager of Murata Manufacturing Co., Limited; Ms. Ee Jin Tan, Lead, Innovation & Ecosystem Development of Piece Future; Ms. Eugene Siu, CEO and Co-Founder of Petaife Limited; Ms. Wendy Lam, Founder of EzyGreenPak Limited; and Ms. Wendy Leong, Founder & CEO of Veriva Systems, shedding light on fresh IP pathways and the evolving role of IP in fostering business growth, while presenting insightful sharing by women in technology entrepreneurship. This session was moderated by Mr. Jason Loh, Founder & CEO of Piece Future.
Global Tech Summits, Innovation Hub & IP Market
Throughout the two-day forum, the “Global Tech Summits” featured comprehensive exploration of the changes and opportunities that AI brings to various industries, including food and agriculture, sports, real estate, communications, and Web3. The “Startup Playbook” session shared practical information from establishing a startup to expanding a global enterprise for startups and inventors.
This year’s Innovation & IP Market, themed “Smart City Innovation”, showcased over 20 innovative projects in areas such as smart city technology, digital business, smart living, artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics, and transportation. Xu Song, Deputy Director, Science & Technology Innovation Division of the Authority of Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone of Shenzhen said: “The Business of IP Asia Forum provided an excellent platform for exploring business opportunities and networking. The Authority of Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone of Shenzhen gathered enterprises and institutions in the field of intellectual property and joined the forum. They received enquiries from over 40 renowned IP organization and technology companies from various countries and regions regarding policies and measures for establishing operations in Qianhai. This helps enterprises in both ‘going global’ and ‘attracting foreign investment’."
Related Link
BUSINESS OF IP ASIA FORUM: https://bipasia.hktdc.com/conference/bip/en
