Hong Kong and neighboring Guangdong Province in southern China agreed on Thursday to strengthen their cooperation in cracking down on copyright piracy and giving a better protection umbrella for intellectual property rights in both places.

Reviewing the latest developments of intellectual property in Hong Kong and Guangdong at its 5th meeting Thursday, the Guangdong-Hong Kong Expert Group on the Protection of Intellectual Property Rights concluded that many intellectual property cooperation efforts had been successfully completed, citing achievements in an education-sharing program for teachers from primary and secondary schools of both regions together with a training and exchange program for officials of both sides.

The expert group also discussed projects for the second half of the year, including enhancing the intellectual property education-sharing program and organizing a seminar on intellectual property and the development of small and medium enterprises in Guangdong.

Since its establishment in 2003, the expert group has successfully promoted copyright protection in both regions, said Stephen Selby, director of Intellectual Property under Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government.

The proportion of trademark applications by Chinese mainland enterprises filed in Hong Kong increased from 4 percent in 2003 to 10 percent last year, of which 40 percent of the applicants were from Guangdong Province, according to the Intellectual Property Department.

Selby said Hong Kong would step up efforts in trademark application by conducting talks with Guangdong on the intellectual property system in Hong Kong as the "No Fakes" pledge scheme, a plan to wipe out fakes and counterfeits goods from both markets.

(Xinhua News Agency June 23, 2006)