■ IPR
Beijing tightens patent law
China plans to adjust its patent law to better meet its WTO obligations, boost innovation and safeguard economic security, state media reported yesterday. Research on an amendment to the Patent Law began earlier this year, with proposed changes to be disclosed by the national legislature next year, the state-run newspaper China Daily quoted Tian Lipu (田力普), commissioner of the State Intellectual Property Office, as saying. "I hope the amendment can be completed by 2008," Tian said. China joined the WTO in 2001 with pledges to open its own markets and fight commercial piracy that costs Western companies an estimated US$16 billion in lost sales each year.
■ BEVERAGES
Kirin boosts China presence
Japan's Kirin Brewery said yesterday that it would invest about US$84 million to build a cutting-edge factory in China and take other measures to boost business in the world's biggest beer market. Kirin will turn Zhuhai Kirin President Brewery, a joint venture with a Taiwanese firm, into a wholly-owned subsidiary by purchasing the 40 percent stake held by the partner, the Japanese firm said. Kirin will also start building a second plant in Zhuhai, China, for completion in June 2007. The new Zhuhai factory alone is estimated to cost &$165;6.6 billion (US$55.5 million). The new plant will aim to produce 200 million liters of beer a year initially, double the production of the existing plant, and increase capacity to 400 million liters in the future. Products from the new plant will be shipped not just to the Zhuhai delta area but also to northern China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and the Philippines, the company said.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source