March 2007  |
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From the Editor
As China's markets continue to grow and the economy matures, it has become more capable of competing with more established economies.While the economic playing field is not yet level, all indicia lead to the emergence of a flat economic world.Thomas Friedman, the award-winning New York Times columnist, recently visited Beijing and spoke on the emergence of a flat economic world, as discussed in his best seller The World is Flat. Beijing opened its doors and its minds to Friedman.Whether riding the subway, sitting at a coffee shop, or enjoying tea in a traditional teahouse, the people of Beijing poured over Friedman's book, recognizing the story told as their own story, identifying the predictions as foretelling their own future.And, indeed, Friedman's theory has much to do with China. Friedman recounts in his book several examples of Chinese companies that have become or are becoming part of large global complex supply chains.These supply chains reach across the oceans to outsource everything from customer service to medical report interpretations to component manufacturing.This level and extent of outsourcing is available today because of new and improved technologies, such as the Internet, fiber-optics, and the PC. Without these new technologies, perhaps the world could not become flat. And if these new technologies were to disappear or be abused, the effect on the global market would be catastrophic.As a minor example of how technology disruptions can affect world markets, one need only consider the recent under-ocean earthquake off the coast of Taiwan①, that temporarily isolated much of the Far East from telecommunications with the West.Not only did the stock markets suffer, but also multi-national companies scrambled to get their communication systems back up and running and individuals were blocked from internet, email, and phone communications with family and friends in other parts of the world.② While protecting technology from natural disasters is important, it is equally important to protect it from theft, abuse, attacks, and misuse. China has made great strides in recent years in its Patent and Trademark laws and regulations and promises to continue to improve its intellectual property rights protection systems. China's positive steps to protect intellectual property rights may reflect the country's changing world views.As modern China abandons the traditional concept that "the sky is round and the earth is square", its position in the world economy is becoming increasingly recognized by other countries.We are glad to see the increasing communications and understanding between the East and the West, which continue to cultivate the ground for common interest.China must continue to take action for and cooperate with other countries on intellectual property rights protection. Whether the world is square or round, if you stand straight up, the horizon is a flat line.Indeed, the view is flat within a square and round world. I invite you to read this Special Issue to learn more about IP protection in China and to make yourself competitive in the flat market. Thank you for everyone who contributed to this Special Issue and we welcome your comments. Kalley Chen Editor-in-chief, King & Wood IP Bulletin Note:
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© 2007 King & Wood