Skip to main content

Taiwan brands make successful foray into global licensing markets

  • Date:2018-11-21
Taiwan brands make successful foray into global licensing markets

The Ministry of Culture gave a presentation on the results of this year's "Image Licensing: Fresh Taiwan" project on Nov. 21, sharing the advantages and achievements in content cultivation of Taiwan-based brands and image makers.

 

Since 2016, the Ministry of Culture has selected intellectual property holders to participate in international licensing fairs, assisting Taiwan companies in cultivating overseas markets under the banner "Fresh Taiwan" and building Taiwan's global cultural image.

 

In the past year, 21 companies with original characters and brands participated in three major licensing fairs in Asia the 2017 China Licensing Expo in Shanghai, the 2018 Hong Kong International Licensing Show, and the 2018 Licensing Expo Japan, attracting nearly 3,000 buyers and media coverage of over 200 news reports at home and abroad.

 

The companies and brands also made a southbound foray into Malaysia for the first time, and dozens of cooperation letters of intent were signed at Fresh Taiwan pavilions across the globe, in which the humorous and exquisite Taiwan character images became the focus of attention for many buyers visiting international trade fairs.

 

As China becomes more and more familiar with the cash-in operational models of the licensing industry, capital-intensive Chinese companies have brought an increasing number of IP products from Japan, South Korea, Europe, and the United States. The creative capacity of Taiwanese brands, along with their exquisite and humorous touch, now form new opportunities to promote Taiwanese products in the China market.

 

In terms of business deployment in international markets, the best market access can be summarized in three approaches: to establish an agent system, to seek cooperative partners at target markets, and to speed up efforts in boosting brand recognition.

 

The single-player business model is not suited for international markets. Instead, government policies are leading Taiwan's creative entrepreneurs to expand their perspectives, introducing experts to provide marketing recommendations, and consolidating resources from different sectors to help Taiwan brands succeed in the global licensing arena.