The European Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, thanks to partial EU funding and the Hong Kong Customs and Excise Department, were delighted to co-host the first “Annual Regional European IPR Protection and Enforcement Conference,” on 18^th to 19^th September 2012.

The 2 day conference brought together an impressive set of participants from all over the world that includes diplomats, customs official, brand owners, law enforcement officials, investigators and industry organizations in Asia Pacific, Australia, Europe, and the U.S.A. Over 170 participants learned from the speakers on the various issues regarding IPR protection and enforcement.

The conference was comprised of 6 different panels all focusing on various aspects of IPR protection and enforcement. The panellist were government officials, brand owners and law enforcement officials, thereby giving the audience a wide variety of knowledge and valuable experiences to take away from the fact-filled conference.

The conference was inaugurated with a welcoming note by H.E. Tam Yiu-Keung, Assistant Commissioner, Customs and Excise Department, HKSAR, who welcomed the participants in the conference. The opening remarks were provided by Mr. Paul Brough, Chairman of the European Chamber of Commerce in HK, who introduced the European Brands Protection Council to the participants and an overview of the EU IPR initiatives.

Mr. Peter K F Cheung, Director of Intellectual Property Department, HKSAR, gave the opening presentation focusing on Hong Kong’s role as a hub for IPR protection in the Asia Pacific Region.

The panels featured customs officials, brand owners and intergovernmental organisation representatives, the conference focused on several IPR related issues:

Customs Panel: “Customs Cooperation in Protecting and Enforcing IPR in the Asia Pacific Region”

1. Mr. Wang Jun, Deputy Director, Guangdong Sub-Administration, General Administration of Customs of PRC
2. Mrs. Koo Youngeun, Korea Customs Service, IPR Investigator
3. Ms. Yusun Woo, Brand Enforcement Manager, Louis Vuitton Korea
4. Mr. Stanislas Barro, Regional Brand Protection Manager for the APAC Region and India, Puma, Asia Pacific Limited
5. Mr. Teddy Raval, Attorney III, Assistant Chief, IPR, Bureau of Customs, the Philippines
6. Ms. Sophie Molle, IPM Project Manager at World Customs Organization
7. Mr. Chan Chi-Keung, Divisional Commander, Intellectual Property Investigation Bureau, Customs and Excise Department, HKSAR

Police Panel: “Best Case IPR Protection and Enforcement Police files”

1. Mr. Lin Xian-Yun, Deputy Director-General, Economic Crime Investigation Department, Shenzhen Municipal Public Security Bureau
2. Federal Agent Marcus Tawton, Team Leader of Crime Operations, Australian Federal Police
3. Mr. Hwa Gu Kang, Senior Criminal Investigator, Criminal Division of Supreme Prosecutors’ Office, Republic of Korea
4. Mr. Joel Tovera, Supervising agent, National Bureau of Investigation-IPRD, The Philippines
5. M Suresh, Regional Criminal Enforcement Manager, Louis Vuitton
6. Ms. Catherine Yip, Divisional Commander, Intellectual Property Investigation Bureau, Customs and Excise Department, HKSAR

Cross-agencies Panel: “Methods of Prevention and Suppression of IPR related Crimes”

1. Mr. Sim Sokheng, Deputy Director of Department of Intellectual Property, Ministry of Commerce of Cambodia
2. Mr. Luo Huaxin, Divisional Chief, Gongbei Customs District of PRC
3. Mr. Eric Wiart, Regional French Customs Attaché, French Customs
4. Ms. Bernie Hung, Senior Legal Counsel, PPR Asia-Pacific
5. Mr. Mohammad Adri, Director, Directorate of Investigation, Directorate General of Intellectual Property Rights, Indonesia
6. Mr. Pan Hyun Ki, Senior Deputy Director, Korean Intellectual Property Office, Intellectual property Protection Team
7. Dato Iskandar Halim Sulaiman, Deputy Director Enforcement Division, Ministry of Domestic Trade, Co-operatives and Consumerism, Malaysia
8. Mr. Allan B. Gepty, Deputy Director General, Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines
9. Mr. Michael Kwan, Superintendent, Intellectual Property Investigation Bureau, Customs and Excise Department, HKSAR

IPR Owners Panel: “Industry Perspective on Building Cooperation with Law Enforcement Agencies”

1. Mr. Alexis Touzin, Intellectual Property Centre Director, European Chamber of Commerce in Korea
2. Mr. Cyril Sayag, Vice President Legal and Public Affairs, Pernod Ricard Asia
3. Mr. Sirisak Tiyapan, Director General, Intellectual Property and International Trade Litigation, Office of the Attorney General, Thailand
4. Ms. Céline Eyers , Senior Legal Counsel, TKS
5. Dr. Edward Haijiang Yang, Senior Manager, Brand Protection APAC, NOKIA
6. Mr. Tavs Jensen Vagnby, Owner, International Design House
7. Ms. Beata Suwala, China IPR SME Helpdesk

Postal, Express & Shipping Industry Panel: “Countering counterfeits on the Frontier”

1. Mr. Lok Hwee Chong, Chair of the Conference of Asia Pacific Express Carriers (CAPEC) Customs Facilitation Working Committee; Regional Manager, Customs & Regulatory Affairs, Asia and India, TNT Express Worldwide
2. Mr. Frank Jensen, Director Group Sales, Modern Terminals Group
3. Mr. Lui Tze-Cheuk, Assistant Superintendent, Intellectual Property Investigation Bureau, Customs and Excise Department, HKSAR
4. Ms. Alice Lee, Associate Dean and Associate Professor, Faculty of Law, HKU

EU Panel: “Border Enforcement Cooperation between the European Union and Asia”

1. Mr. Andre Berends, Protection of citizens and enforcement of IPR, Policy Officer - IPR enforcement policy officer, DG Taxation and Customs Union (TAXUD), European Commission
2. Mr. Rick Ligthart, Customs Attaché, Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in China
3. Mr. Manfred Hofmann, Customs Liaison Officer Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany
4. Mr. Mayank Vaid, Chairman of the European Brands Protection Council of the European Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong
5. Mr. Stefan Amarasinha, Head of Trade and Economic Section, European Union Office to Hong Kong and Macao

The conference’s closing remarks were provided by Mr. Andrew Ki, Head of Intellectual Property Investigation Bureau Customs and Excise Department HKSAR and Mr. Stefan Amarasinha - Head of Trade and Economic Section, European Union Office to Hong Kong and Macao, who warmly thanked the guest speakers and the participants for attending the conference and extended the invitation to attend the 2^nd Annual Regional European IPR Protection and Enforcement Conference, in September 2013.