Huawei has become a new structural partner of the Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce (FCCC).

Huawei is a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider. Through its dedication to customer-centric innovation and strong partnerships, Huawei has established end-to-end advantages in telecom networks, devices and cloud computing. Huawei is committed to creating maximum value for telecom operators, enterprises and consumers by providing competitive solutions and services. Its products and solutions have been deployed in over 170 countries, serving more than one third of the world’s population. Huawei currently has over 7,700 staff based in Europe, of whom 850 are working in R&D. We run 17 R&D sites located in eight European countries (Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden and the UK) and operate numerous joint innovation centers in partnership with telecom and ICT partners. Further information is available at www.huawei.eu
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Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer in China in 2014

Beyond the prejudice and the war stories, lie real business opportunities
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The Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce and the Province of East-Flanders have the pleasure to invite you to the China Roundtable Meeting focusing on ‘Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer in China in 2014’? This event will take place at 15h30 on Wednesday 24 September 2014 at the House of the Province of East Flanders, Seminariestraat 2, 9000 Gent.

Mr Philippe Snel, Lawyer and Chief Representative at the Dewolf & Partners Shanghai Office  , will illustrate how recent innovations in PRC trademark law and the copyright law once more confirm that China has definitively turned the corner on the practice of cheap copies and inescapable trademark infringements.

Understand how your Intellectual Property assets can become the essential
cornerstone of your business development in China. Learn from others how your company (even if it’s small) could be able to take advantage of the ongoing technology drive in China without risking it all.

The programme:

15h30     Registration
16h00     Welcome by Gwenn Sonck, Executive Director, Flanders-China Chamber  of Commerce
Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer in China in 2014
Beyond the prejudice and the war stories, lie real business opportunities
By Mr Philippe Snel, Lawyer and Chief Representative at the Dewolf & Partners Shanghai Office
Case study and exchange of experiences

17h30     Networking reception

During this conference you will receive the publication “FCCC Members’ Portraits in China’. The booklet includes 17 portraits of member companies active in China. The China-based managers of those companies talk about how their firms became active in the country and the difficulties and pitfalls they faced to on their way to success in the largest and most challenging market on earth.

This event is organized with the support of Flanders Investment & Trade.

Before this session, we also offer the opportunity to have a ‘free clinic’ on legal advice on your China matters. If you are interested in attending this event and have a free clinic, please register online before 18 September 2014 via this link.

Huawei Technologies is transforming its Honor handset brand into an independent smartphone brand that targets China’s young mobile internet users between 18 and 30. Sales will be mainly made through online channels, the same tactic used by Xiaomi Corp, the maker of affordable smartphones. At the Honor brand launch ceremony, Huawei also unveiled two new dual-SIM devices, the Honor 3X and Honor 3C. The Honor 3X joins the first wave of octa-core, 1.7-gigahertz MediaTek 6592-powered devices, and it boasts 2 gigabytes of RAM and a 13-megapixel main camera. The Honor 3C features a quad-core, 1.3-GHz MT6582 system-on-chip and a 8-megapixel main camera. The price of the Honor 3X is set from CNY1,698, which is even more affordable than Xiaomi’s MI 3. The price of the Honor 3C is as low as CNY798, which is seen as strong competition for Xiaomi’s sub-brand Hongmi, the company’s low-end smartphone. Huawei has big ambitions for this new brand. Xu Xinquan, President of e-commerce at Huawei, said that the company expects shipments of the Honor brand to exceed 10 million units in 2014, with target sales of USD2 billion. Tablet computers, set-top boxes and smart televisions will in the future also be sold under the Honor brand.

China has temporarily lifted a 14-year-old ban on selling video game consoles, paving the way for Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo to enter the world’s third-largest video game market in terms of revenue. China saw video game revenues grow by more than a third from 2012 to nearly USD14 billion last year, but console makers are likely to face an uphill battle for market share in a country where a whole generation has grown up without a PlayStation, Xbox or Wii and where free PC and mobile games dominate. The absence of consoles has left PC games with almost two-thirds of the market, according to data released at the annual China games industry conference in December. Browser gaming accounted for just over 15% and mobile gaming was nearly 14%. China banned games consoles in 2000, citing their adverse effect on the mental health of its youth. The suspension of the ban permits “foreign-invested enterprises” to make game consoles within Shanghai’s free trade zone (FTZ) and sell them in China after inspection by cultural departments. For console makers seeking growth in China, price may be an issue. Over 70% of Chinese gamers earn under CNY4,000 a month, said Hong Kong-based brokerage CLSA. The new Xbox One sells for nearly USD500 in the United States, while Sony’s PlayStation 4 goes for just under USD400.

China issued long-awaited 4G licenses to three telecommunications carriers on December 4 which would offer mobile internet access 20 to 50 times faster than the current 3G network and create a new trillion-yuan market for devices and services. China Mobile launched 4G services in Shanghai, Beijing and 11 other cities before the end of last year and will expand to 340 by the end of 2014. Xi Guohua, Chairman of China Mobile, said that the company will build 500,000 4G base stations across China in 2014, constituting the world’s largest 4G network. The company currently has about 200,000 4G base stations. Users can upgrade to the 4G network without changing phone numbers, China Mobile said. It has been testing 4G networks for two years. China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom all got 4G licenses based on the time division-long term evolution (TD-LTE) technology. China Unicom and China Telecom also got approval to test another 4G technology, frequency division-LTE (FD-LTE), which is mainly used in overseas markets. China will issue FD-LTE 4G licenses later, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said. China Mobile also got the approval to operate fixed-line business including family broadband, which makes it possible to launch bundled services, the Ministry added. The initial investment for 4G will reach CNY500 billion in a few years. By 2019, China is expected to have 700 million mobile subscribers on 4G, making it the world’s biggest 4G market, according to equipment maker Ericsson. China Mobile plans to launch 50 new 4G phones in the first half of the year, the Shanghai Daily reports.

The new 4G license will likely benefit China Mobile, the world’s largest wireless network operator, more than its peers. The company was first to conduct 4G TD-LTE trials in various cities, including Beijing and Guangzhou. It is now investing heavily to expand the reach of its high-speed mobile network across the country. China Mobile is hoping the 4G network expansion will increase the number of high-paying subscribers using mobile data services. The operator announced seven upgraded data packages for 4G services that will take effect from February 1. The cheapest monthly package starts from CNY40 for 400 megabytes, and the highest costs CNY280 for a 10-gigabyte package. All seven data packages can be shared among various devices. China Mobile will charge users CNY0.29 for every extra megabyte beyond those in the packages.

China Telecom released its 4G brand on December 10. It will commence 4G services in China in the first quarter of 2014. China Unicom said its 4G network will largely rely on FDD-LTE technology, the other mainstream 4G telecommunication standard that is widely adopted globally. Lu Yimin, General Manager of China Unicom, said the company plans to launch 150 models of 4G smartphones in 2014. China Mobile aims to sell 100 million 4G phones this year or 190 to 220 million 3G and 4G phones combined, compared with 155 million 3G phones last year. “There will be more than 200 models that are 4G. Every one can afford it because some cost less than CNY1,000 each”, said China Mobile Chairman Xi Guohua. China Mobile also launched a new 4G brand called “He”, Chinese for “harmony” on December 18. China Mobile will spend more on subsidies this year as it tries to boost smartphone sales by as much as 42% and lure customers to its new high-speed service.