Protecting small firms from big poachers

This year's white paper on small and medium-sized companies focuses on how such firms, which are unable to match their larger rivals in capital or manufacturing capacity, can overcome their competitive disadvantages.

The report, compiled by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, urges small and medium-sized firms to make strategic use of information technology, expand their exports and overseas operations and complement each other through networks involving players from industry, government and academia.

But there are many problems confronting these companies that are not referred to in the white paper but which still need to be tackled immediately. One of them concerns intellectual property-the patents, trade secrets and other proprietary information that give a competitor the edge.