Hanoi (VNA) -Businesses may be able to improve earnings and market values if they are ableto develop and use intellectual property in efficient ways, officials said at aseminar on April 25.

According to Mai Ha, chairman ofthe Vietnam Intellectual Property Association, Vietnamese businesses need toconsider measures to protect, manage and implement their intellectual propertyrights.

He said that those actions wouldhelp companies perform at the best possible level and avoid costly conflictsand lawsuits regarding intellectual property rights.

When a business has a good policyto protect its intellectual property, it would have comparative advantages overother players in the market, he added.

In addition, the company would beable to strengthen its position in the market place, minimise the chance ofcompetitors copying its intellectual assets and have the right to ask forcompensation if competitors violate the firm’s intellectual property rights, hesaid.

Valuable intellectual propertieswould also help improve the business value for the company in the eye ofinvestors and financial institutions, Ha said, adding that the company mayincrease its earnings by selling, merchandising and commercialising itsintellectual assets.

The Vietnam Chamber of Commerceand Industry (VCCI)’s Secretary General Pham Thi Thu Hang said that society andthe business community have misjudged the role of intellectual property rightsin terms of economic growth.

Local companies must be awarethat intellectual property is a non-physical asset, which can generate muchhigher value than all combined physical assets, in current socio-economicdevelopment, she said.

Especially, when Vietnamintegrates more deeply in the international community, the role of intellectualproperty has become more important in all business activities from productionto distribution, Hang added.

Sharing a similar view, Dinh HuuPhi, General Director of the National Office of Intellectual Property, saidthat intellectual rights are a tool to raise the competitiveness of localcompanies and the national economy as it is one of the most important internalqualities to determine sustainable economic growth.

Therefore, Vietnamese companiesneeds to use their intellectual rights in the most effective way to improve theirvalue and position in the market, he said.

They should be prepared to faceand resolve challenges and use solutions to maximise and protect the use ofintellectual rights, Phi said, adding that they should acknowledge intelligenceas a highly valuable asset for development.

The seminar was organised by the VietnamChamber of Commerce and Industry, drawing significant attention from thebusiness community, associations, economists and the media.-VNA