Aug.10 (China Daily) -- The approval of a comprehensive intellectual property reform proposal that will be introduced in the Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City, or SSGKC, will help attract more Chinese and overseas innovation and technology companies to expand their businesses in the booming city, according to a senior executive of the SSGKC.

The proposal is part of a comprehensive IP strategy to aid the city's development.

"Better use and protection of intellectual property rights are crucial to the process of industrial expansion, especially in the innovation and technology sector," said Ng Kok Siong, CEO of Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City Investment and Development Co Ltd.

SSGKC was approved to carry out integrated pilot reform in intellectual property protection and utilization by the State Council on July 13, and it aims to deal with the application and protection of intellectual property rights, and for the intellectual property strategy to be more comprehensively embedded to help facilitate the country's economic development.

"The proposed reform will help provide better services for the protection and application of intellectual property rights for innovation and technology companies in the knowledge city and the Pearl River Delta," said Chen Zhiying, a member of the standing committee of the CPC Guangzhou committee and head of the SSGKC's administrative committee.

Reform proposal in SSGKC to boost the regional economy

The reform proposal stipulates that a sound intellectual property ecosystem will be built in the SSGKC by 2020, covering IP development, trade, application and protection.

"In the long term, a company's business success will be heavily reliant on its application and protection of intellectual property rights. We believe that the pilot reform proposed will help attract more Chinese and overseas investment to the knowledge city from the innovation and technology sectors," said Chen.

Citing a recent visit to Israel to drum up trade and investment, Ng said overseas technology companies are principally concerned about the question of intellectual property when it comes to the possibility of investing in the knowledge city.

"Their first questions are always related to intellectual property," Ng recalled.

The SSGKC, with a planned area of 123 square kilometers, has attached great importance to IP application and protection since its inception in 2010, according to Ng.

He added: "We have been working hard with local government authorities and partners to provide better services to investors for IP use and protection."

To facilitate the provision of better services, the local authorities have established an intellectual property court and arbitration court and introduced an IP research and development center in the knowledge city.

After years of development, SSGKC has positioned itself as a leader in smart technologies and innovation, according to Ng.

According to the Guangzhou Development District, which administrates SSGKC, more than 230 innovation and technology companies have settled in the knowledge city, with registered capital of 29.4 billion yuan ($4.42 billion).

The companies are involved in a range of different sectors, including new information and technology, medical instruments, intelligent equipment, creative culture, new energy, energy-saving and environmental protection, healthcare and new materials.

In one of the latest developments, SSGKC signed a memorandum of understanding in July with Siemens Ltd China to jointly develop a smart ecotechnology demonstration center in Guangzhou, which will become Siemen's first urban sustainability hub in the Asia-Pacific region.

"The progression towards smart and green city technologies in the knowledge city is happening at the perfect time to propel its development into a new phase of growth and bring benefits to the local communities," said Ng.

According to Ng, SSGKC is expected to house a live-in population of 500,000 and will provide a harmonious 'living, working, learning and leisure' environment in the next 20 years.

"SSGKC is positioned as a unique, vibrant and sustainable city that is highly attractive to both talents and knowledge-based industries," stated Ng.