‘IP is everything’: Hong Kong must strengthen intellectual property protections if hopes to become innovation hub, leading scientist says
- Dennis Lo, a Chinese University professor known for his medical technology inventions, says plans to boost R&D in Hong Kong are ‘encouraging’
- But improvements to local research infrastructure will not be enough without also enhancing the city’s ability to protect intellectual property, he adds
Hong Kong needs to strengthen intellectual property (IP) protections for new inventions if it hopes to become the region’s innovation and technology hub, a leading researcher has said, noting scientific infrastructure alone will not be enough to achieve the goal.
Dennis Lo Yuk-ming, a Chinese University professor of chemical pathology known for his inventions in non-invasive prenatal testing and cancer screening, said in an interview with the Post that the city needed more legal professionals familiar with IP rights.
Pointing to ambitious plans to foster innovation recently unveiled by city leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, Lo called the push “unprecedented” and “encouraging”, but said other policy support – including on the subject of IP protection – would be important in bolstering research and development.
“IP is crucial. If what you do involves originality, IP is everything,” Lo said. “If others can easily copy your invention, you will lose quickly.”
In her policy address in October, Lam laid out a plan to transform the city into an international innovation and technology hub, a goal handed down by Beijing in its latest five-year plan, the national development blueprint.
