The 4th Workshop on the China-EU Innovation and Competition – one of the sub-forums of the 19th Shanghai International Intellectual Property Forum – was held on Nov 19 in Shanghai city in East China.

Guests exchange ideas online during the workshop. [Photo/WeChat account: Shanghai_IPA]

With its theme of "Open innovation and intellectual property applications for SME growth", the forum was organized by the Shanghai Intellectual Property Administration, or SIPA. Affected by the COVID-19 epidemic, the event was held online.

Yu Chen, deputy director general of SIPA, said that intellectual property or IP was the core driver for innovation and development, as well as an important support for a first-class business environment. Shanghai would improve its services and accelerate policy guarantees for the innovation and development of SMEs, Yu added

Mao Lijuan, deputy director of Shanghai Education Commission, noted that the forum offered an opportunity for discussing technological innovation and IP development under the new global innovation circumstances.

During the forum, experts and academics from different countries and regions discussed and exchanged ideas on a main topic – open patent permission systems and innovative strategies.

Experts said contributions made by SMEs to innovation and economic development were increasingly important, so reform of the IP system needed to take the interests of SMEs into account.