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Hewlett-Packard opens its first intellectual property licensing centre for the Asia Pacific in Singapore
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Hewlett-Packard (HP) has done what few companies can - turn invention into a corporate mission. And some would say it's mission accomplished for the technology giant, which today boasts an impressive collection of over 30,000 patents, for everything from its inkjet printer technology to software and hardware components. This certainly bodes well for HP's business, considering the technology industry is increasingly viewing intellectual property (IP) licensing as an important source of revenue. In the US alone, patent licensing revenues were estimated at S$238.1 billion (US$150 billion) in 2003.
With IP's increasing importance, HP is casting its nets further, and it's now looking east for inspiration and ready markets. In April this year, the company opened its regional IP licensing centre in Singapore, to provide Asia Pacific companies, governments, research institutes and universities with access to its burgeoning technology portfolio through licensing agreements. This is HP's second IP licensing centre; its first was set up three years ago in Palo Alto, US.
The Singapore-based centre will focus on helping companies in the Asia Pacific find the right licensing mix for their business, which covers technology, patents, trademarks, copyrights, standards and know-how, says its associate director Dr Lim Eng Hann. He adds that the centre can also provide expertise in technology transfers, as well as help companies fully exploit their licensed IP to meet their respective business needs.
LICENCE TO THRIVE
Already, HP's new IP licensing centre has had regional customers knocking on its doors. Among the first in line is India's Prodigy Labs, which has signed an agreement to license HP's gesture-based keyboard technology. Developed by HP Labs India, the gesture-based keyboard is an electronic pen-based device that creates text using phonetic scripts instead of roman alphabets.
Prodigy Labs, a fast-growing product development company, will manufacture the gesture-based keyboard under its own brand name and manage all marketing, sales and support activities for the technology.
"Developing innovative products...requires a significant investment in R&D, which can be a barrier for companies with limited R&D resources," says Prodigy Labs' managing director Harsha KV. "With this licensing agreement, Prodigy Labs gains access to HP's IP and vast research capabilities, which helps us quickly develop new products while lowering our investments and [ensuring we get] to market faster."
DESTINATION: SINGAPORE
As such, HP's epectations are running high for HP's Singapore-based centre. According to HP's vice president of IP licensing, Joe Beyers, it is hoped that the centre will broaden the company's ability to generate value from its IP assets in new markets and realise a greater return on its R&D investments over the next few years.
"Singapore was selected as the site for [our] Asia Pacific IP Licensing Center in view of its mature legal system, the government's strong support and respect for IP and its overall strength as a strategic base for IP management," says HP Southeast Asia's managing director Tan Lee Chew.
The centre will be staffed by five employees initially, with another five executives currently in training at HP's Palo Alto headquarters.
"Basing the [centre] in Singapore would benefit a wide range of industries here and in the region, which can now enjoy better accessibility to the rich intellectual asset base of HP," says Singapore Economic Development Board's assistant managing director, Chua Taik Him. "We appreciate HP's effort to train the manpower...[and] will continue to support companies with the intention to invest in training and manpower development."
Naturally, the development has been warmly embraced by Singapore. As a member of the World Trade Organization, Singapore has established IP laws that comply with the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement.
The US-Singapore Free Trade Agreement has also brought about significant legislative changes to Singapore's IP laws, and this has helped raise Singapore's IP regime status in line with the world's best practices. These legislative changes advance Singapore's IP regime beyond TRIPS, which will add further value by creating an advanced regulatory infrastructure that will help support the Republic's knowledge and digital economies. The provisions include improvements in patents, copyrights and trademarks, and even introduces plant variety protection. The stronger IP laws will thus encourage the arrival of new players in such specialty industries as info-communications, biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, and promote further growth in these sectors. Comprehensive legislation and structured registration systems are also in place to support the country's strengths as a hub for IP management and protection.
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