Hong Kong Commerce Secretary Praises IP Protection Regime

by Mary Swire, for LawAndTax-News.com, Hong Kong

21 October 2003

Speaking recently at the APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation) CEO Summit in Bangkok, Hong Kong's secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology, John Tsang, stressed the importance of a robust intellectual property (IP) protection regime, and outlined the progress that the territory has made in this area in recent years.

Stressing Hong Kong's traditional reliance on the creativity of its people, Mr Tsang observed that in addition to fashion and manufacturing, the jurisdiction is also known as one of the major film production centres in Asia, and is home to the regional headquarters of four out of the 'big five' music production companies.

"We have to reinforce this platform by attracting quality investment to Hong Kong. No one will, however, be prepared to invest their time and effort in innovation if their output is easily stolen. It is, therefore, critical that a robust regime of intellectual property protection is in place to support our economic development in the future."

Revealing to those attending the summit that such a regime has indeed been put in place in Hong Kong, the Commerce Secretary went on to describe the "multi-pronged" approach that the authorities have taken towards tackling the problem of piracy.

He explained that in addition to legislative efforts, the jurisdiction's customs department has cracked down on the underground manufacture of counterfeit CDs, the business community has been deterred from using illegal software, and efforts have been made to change the mindset of the population via seminars, sponsored films, and computer games.

He also discussed the threat posed by the increasing use of the internet to disseminate pirated material, and revealed that: "Hong Kong is probably among the first in the world to extend copyright protection to material on the internet."

"Piracy is a global issue. We must all work together to contain piracy and if at all possible, ridding it at source. In the process, we need cooperation from copyright owners and support from the community," Mr Tsang observed, continuing:

"The aspirations and demands from these two groups may not be the same at times. However, I think no one will argue against the fact that intellectual property rights protection is important, especially if we wish to nurture the development of knowledge and creative industries."

He concluded:

"With this common goal in mind, I believe that we will find our way through to ensure that creativity and innovation would be encouraged, safeguarded, and rewarded."

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