IP in China
The lessons: use partnerships and networks
As regional director of sales and marketing for the Asia-Pacific with US-based engineering company Bristol Babcock, one of the first lessons David Trench learned about doing business in China was the difficulty of doing so without a local partner: 'Business in China was not done on what you know, but who you know'.
Once a partnership with a Chinese engineering firm was established, the company's Chinese export market took off.
Rather than taking the legal road of IP protection through the registration process, the company opted to have faith in its local partner.
The test came when the company discovered its products were being copied. It quickly found that its instinct to trust the partnership had been spot on:
'Our first level of protection was enforcement - our Chinese partner made a phone call and had it stopped. He employed his network to take action and get results', says David.
David says companies looking to enter the Chinese market should do so with the understanding that China's approach to IP is vastly different from Australia's: 'In 10 years of being actively involved, the only people I have heard speak about the protection of IP in China are Australians'.
Last Updated: 13/12/2012
