IT pros dispute govt claim of strong R&D support

By Teresa Leung, Computerworld Hong Kong | May 19, 2009

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The Hong Kong government said it has thrown much support to tech start-ups' R&D projects, but IT pros disagreed.
 
The Innovation and Technology Commission (ITC) is committed to assisting businesses to succeed with the help of innovation and technology, through provision of infrastructural facilities and funding programs, said Andrew Lai, deputy commissioner for Innovation and Technology of the Hong Kong SAR Government Saturday at the opening ceremony of Innovative Entrepreneur of the Year 2009.
 
The Small Entrepreneur Research Assistance Program (SERAP), funded by ITC, provided start-up capital for technology entrepreneurs and companies, Lai added.
 
The SERAP provides a maximum funding of HK$4 million for each approved project on a dollar-for-dollar matching basis, according to the ITC website.
 
Lai cited some examples of SERAP-funded companies that have won the Innovative Entrepreneur of the Year award over the years.
 
One of them is face recognition system provider Titanium Technology that received SERAP funding in 2002 and 2004 and won the Innovative Entrepreneur award in 2003.
 
AKOS Advanced Technology, which received SERAP funding in 2003 to develop an indoor air quality monitoring device controlled by a Personal Data Assistant platform, won the award in the same year.
 
"These examples show that combining the efforts of entrepreneurs with support from the Government, we can see more successful cases of innovative technology coming up," Lai noted, adding that a total of 112 entrepreneurs have been awarded over the past 12 years.
 
Gov't criticized as lukewarm towards IT
Home-grown database admin tools provider PremiumSoft, the Grand Award and Best Business Product Gold Award winner, said it never applies for government R&D funding.
 
"We didn’t bother to do so because we don’t believe the local government is eager to give IT a boost. Besides the application process (for government funding) is tedious," said Roy Choi, founder and sales and business development director at PremiumSoft.
 
"We did apply for office space inside the Hong Kong Science Park before, but we were rejected without knowing why," said Choi. "We survive anyway without their help."
 
Bobby Tang, head, EPC/RFID, GS1 Hong Kong said local universities secure much of the government R&D funds.
 
"Universities have lots of resources and can easily get their students to write proposals for the fund applications," said Tang. "But tech start-ups can't afford hire someone to do the same. Their expertise isn’t proposal writing. They lose to universities even when they have better, more marketable products."
 
Funding application process not SMB-friendly
Some funding programs of the government are never SMB-friendly, Charles Mok, chairman of the Internet Society of Hong Kong stated emphatically. The Internship Program of the Innovation Technology Fund (ITF) is a case in point.
 
The ITF’s internship program covers a maximum monthly allowance of $10,000 for each research intern who has an undergraduate degree plus employer’s contribution to the Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF), and up to $12,000 for an intern with a postgraduate degree plus employer’s MPF contribution.
 
“The internship program requires an organization to also apply for ITF’s other support programs such as SERAP,” said Mok. “But not every company who applies for the internship program is a start-up qualified for SERAP or wants to get the HK$4 million assistance from this particular program.”
 
“All these requirements simplify admin processes for the ITF, but are a nuisance for applicants,” accused Mok.
 
Neighbors in Asia including South Korea, Taiwan, and Singapore fare better than Hong Kong in creating opportunities for tech SMBs, said Mok, adding that the Hong Kong government can learn from these countries that established independent investment firms to help small players grow.