Technology and Communications

Chair

 
Edgar Chen
Tsar & Tsai Law Firm
8th Fl.
245 DunHua S. Rds., Sec. 1

Tel. 886-2-2781-4111

Taipei, Taiwan, China
Fax 886-2-2731-5581

 Vice-Chair

Chong Kin Lim
Drew & Napier LLC
Tel. 65-6531-4110
Fax 65-6535-4864
E-mail: chongkin.lim@drewnapier.com

 

The Technology and Communications Committee brings together two thriving and relevant areas of practice; Technology, the practical application of science to commerce or industry; and Communication, the process of information transfer. It provides the perfect opportunity for advocates & solicitors, corporate counsel, business lawyers and industry players to interact across the global divide for purposes of networking, sharing and drawing on experiences, skills and know-how.
 
The Committee organises programs for each annual meeting of the IPBA befitting the conference theme and the region in which the conference is held.

2012 New Delhi Session
The session in New Delhi is primed to be exciting and introspective with the Technology and Communications Committee, the Energy & Natural Resources Committee, the Environmental Law Committee and the Insurance Committee conducting a joint program on the Fukushima nuclear incident and its impact. One year on, Fukushima has led to significant scrutiny of nuclear power and it s future application around the world.

2011 Kyoto Session
The Kyoto session took place in the remarkable Kyoto International Conference Center, site of the signing of the Kyoto Protocol. An apt venue picking up from last year's theme of "Climate Change".  This year's conference theme of "Innovation" was headlined by a plenary session including innovation in biotechnolgy such as the use of iPS (induced Pluripotent Stem) Cells to create human organs. Innovation and patents were then the main topic of the joint session on Dispute Resolution in Innovation with the arbitrability of IP validity claims turning out to be a hot topic.

2010 Singapore Session
The session in Singapore was very well attended. In keeping with the theme "Climate Change", the Committee presented a joint session on the development and use of clean technology and the tensions between the interests of the business sector, the government, international trade and investment regimes and global needs. Legal issues surrounding the clean technology industry, such as creation, protection and commercialization of that technology through patents of other intellectual property rights, and technology acquisition and licensing were explored in the lush surrounds of Marina Bay Sands in the Garden City of Singapore.

2009 Manila Session
The session in Manila catered to the concerns of Asia. The fear of foreign competition and the need to keep that at bay was captured in illuminating case studies and expositions from speakers from Malaysia, Sri Lanka and the Philippines. The topic was the regulatory and bureaucratic hurdles faced by industry players in offering telecommunications services in the region. The perspective of the regulators was advanced by the Communications and Multimedia Commission of Malaysia. The difficulties faced by the industry players were seen in the CBN satellite cases, the NTT saga in Sri Lanka and the attempts in the Philippines to keep competition at bay by the innovative use of court proceedings and the regulatory framework.

2008 Los Angeles Session
The Los Angeles session met and surpassed expectations. It was Hollywood, and the Writers Guild of America were on strike. The topic was the entertainment industry. The speakers, using entertaining digital audio and video aids, explored the collapsing boundaries between communications and entertainment and the tensions between the rights of the various entities, the consumers, the content creators and the distributors.

 

IPBA members wishing to contribute to the Technology and Communications Committee are invited to contact the Chair or Vice-Chair with any suggestions or requests and to attend the Committee meeting at the annual conference.