Xiaomi is currently in IPBC Asia 2016 in Shanghai

Dec 5, 2016

IAM is pleased to be hosting the fourth IPBC Asia from December 4 to 6 at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Shanghai, Pudong.

As the only event in the region that focuses on how IP owners can strategically use intellectual property, IPBC Asia’s sessions will explore the complex issues associated with IP value creation, but with a specifically Asian flavour, addressing the challenges faced by the region’s rights holders as they seek to expand their businesses across Asia, and beyond.

Returning to Shanghai, China’s commercial powerhouse, IPBC Asia 2016 is set to be the most dynamic yet – leveraging IAM’s extensive relationships with the Chinese IP community and the phenomenal success of previous IPBC Asia events to ensure unparalleled attendance from corporate IP leaders in China, the region and across the globe.

Inside Microsoft’s big deal with Xiaomi and much more from Day One of IPBC Asia 2016

Further I invite you to see what he thought Joff Wild‘s first topics discussed on the first day.

Getting personal – In the opening plenary of the day, featuring Xiaomi’s Paul Lin and Microsoft’s Micky Minhas, the ground-breaking deal announced in May between the two companies was, not surprisingly, the first topic for discussion. IP was a major driver of the agreement, as the Chinese smartphone maker acquired 1,500 patents from the software giant; but the transaction was premised on a much broader collaboration between the pair, with Microsoft applications now set to be included on Xiaomi mobile devices. Minhas, recently appointed as Microsoft’s head of licensing, revealed that the deal had taken a year to unfold after a senior Xiaomi executive had expressed the Chinese’s company’s desire to grow its IP portfolio. He added that one of the key drivers in making it all happen was the relationship between some of the key executives involved in the negotiations. Minhas, Microsoft head of business development Peggy Johnson and Xiaomi’s head of strategic cooperation Wang Xiang, all previously worked at Qualcomm, so there was a level of familiarity; while a face to face meeting between the respective company CEOs in March 2016 largely resolved outstanding issues and advanced the negotiation to the point where it became a matter of getting the contractual terms refined. But what really mattered more than anything, it seems, is that both companies had taken the time to understand each other’s perspectives and needs, and that both were fully focused on finding a win-win outcome. Goodwill, rather than good friendships, are the key to successful IP deal-making. Though, of course, it also helps to get along.

China licensors beware – As Xiaomi’s head of IP strategy and licensing point man, Paul Lin entertains his share of approaches from licensors. This morning he shared with the audience a misstep he feels a lot of global companies are making when they negotiate with Chinese implementors on a FRAND basis. Responding to a question about the European Court of Justice’s decision in the Huawei v ZTE case, he said it provides a good reference point, but that some companies seem to think it’s “the Bible” and can be applied wholesale everywhere. Not so, says Lin: “If you think you can take an EU framework and apply it in China, that’s a mistake”. Gaining an appreciation for the local Chinese rules and regulations – including reference points like the NDRC’s Qualcomm penalties – will get you a lot further, Lin suggested. Bringing your licensing programme to China is no small undertaking. It takes sustained, China-specific engagement, but the rewards could certainly make it worth the effort.

By Tudor
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Website: Tudor