Report

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(A) World Economic Context
3.9 The multilateral trading system spearheaded by the General
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and later the World Trade
Organization (WTO) has set a sea change to the world economy, resulting
in significant increase in international trade, globalisation and emergence
of new economies. As the momentum continues well into the 21 st
century, one important consensus is that innovation is an engine of
sustained economic growth in the future. This has led to ever increasing
competition for talents, investment, knowledge and R&D.
3.10 Apart from the use of public funding, a policy instrument
that governments may employ to promote innovation and technology is
the design of their intellectual property (IP) system 6 as part of the
essential infrastructure. The “World Intellectual Property Report 2011 –
The Changing Face of Innovation” states, amongst others, that IP
protection is one of the important factors in deciding where to conduct
R&D, while most “new-to-the-world” research is conducted either in the
US or in other high-income countries where IP protection tends to be
strong. 7 It is also noted that compared to other innovation policies, IP
protection stands out in that it mobilises decentralised market forces to
guide R&D investment. 8
3.11 According to a study conducted by Professor Paul Cheung
Ying-sheung 9 of the University of Hong Kong for the Advisory
Committee, it is noted that R&D investment and innovation are essential
for maintaining competitiveness and promoting economic growth of the
economies, especially for the well-developed ones. IP-intensive
industries require more investment to sustain competitiveness. In
6
7
8
9
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), “World Intellectual Property Report 2011
– The Changing Face of Innovation” (p.82) (www.wipo.int/freepublications/en/intproperty/
944/wipo_pub_944_2011.pdf).
See WIPO, “World Intellectual Property Report 2011 – The Changing Face of Innovation” (p.88).
See WIPO, “World Intellectual Property Report 2011 – The Changing Face of Innovation”
(p.103).
Professor Cheung is a Member of the Advisory Committee.