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The Guangdong/Hong Kong Expert Group on the Protection of Intellectual Property Rights at its fifth meeting held in Hong Kong today (June 22) agreed to step up co-operation to raise the level of public awareness of intellectual property in both places.
The two sides reviewed the latest developments of intellectual property (IP) in the two places and concluded that many intellectual property co-operation items had been successfully completed. These include an IP education sharing programme held in Nanhai for teachers from primary and secondary schools of both regions; a training and exchange programme for IP officials of both sides and an IP seminar organised in Zhanjiang.
Projects for the second half of the year were discussed, including enhancing the IP education sharing programme for teachers from the primary and secondary schools in both regions and organising a seminar on "Intellectual Property and the Development of Small and Medium Enterprises" in the Guangdong Province.
Speaking at a press conference after the meeting, the Director of Intellectual Property, Mr Stephen Selby, said that since the Expert Group was set up in 2003, it had successfully promoted intellectual property rights protection in both regions. "For example, we note that the proportion of trademark applications in Hong Kong filed by Mainland enterprises has increased from 4% in 2003 to 10% in 2005, of which 40% of the Mainland applicants were from the Guangdong province," Mr Selby said. "We will step up efforts in this area by, for example, conducting talks in Guangdong Province on the intellectual property system in Hong Kong."
The leader of the Guangdong delegation, the Director General of Guangdong Provincial Intellectual Property Office, Mr Li Zhongduo, said the meeting had been very fruitful in building up the co-operation of both sides. "We have agreed to increase our co-operation in both depth and breadth. For example, the 'No Fakes' Pledge Scheme is continuously to be actively promoted in both regions and a research will be conducted on the creative industries of Hong Kong and the Guangdong Province," Mr Li said.
The Expert Group, set up after the Sixth Plenary of the Guangdong/Hong Kong Co-operation Joint Conference in August, 2003, aims at enhancing exchanges and co-operation on various aspects of intellectual property, including promotion and education, training, enforcement and information dissemination. The Guangdong delegation, led by Mr Li, and comprises officials from the Public Security Bureau, the Foreign Trade & Economic Co-operation Department, the Administration for Industry and Commerce, the Copyright Bureau and the Guangdong Customs. The Hong Kong delegation is headed by Mr Selby, and comprises officials from the Commerce, Industry and Technology Bureau and the Customs and Excise Department.
A summary of the co-operation items is posted on the website of Intellectual Property Department at www.ipd.gov.hk.
Ends/Thursday, June 22, 2006
Issued at HKT 13:01
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