November 22, 2000

Hoffman Says Hong Kong Should Specialize In One IT Aspect

Lou Hoffman, president of The Hoffman Agency, a high-tech PR firm, said the reason behind the success of the Silicon Valley is its ability to continually attract well-educated talent to start businesses there. Silicon Valley is unmatched in its concentration of talent. For Hong Kong and other regions to stand out in the global IT market, they have to focus on excelling in one industry.

Hoffman used the example of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Helsinki is the world leader in developing wireless communications technology. It is the “Silicon Valley” for wireless communications. Other regions can learn much from Helsinki’s example. He predicts that there will be many specialized “Silicon Valleys” around the world in the future.

He noted that Silicon Valley, as the leader in global technology development, has many experiences to share with other regions. In particular, a climate that encourages entrepreneurialism and tolerates failure is indispensable to the development of the technology sector. He explained that because the senior executives know that they can recover from a failure, they are willing to take risks, thereby encouraging innovation.

However, Hoffman pointed out that since the cooling of Internet rush, and the downturn of Nasdaq, venture capitalists - the main source of funding for Internet companies - have been more cautious with their investments. He quoted statistics that showed that the majority of venture investments in Northern California were in computer and Internet infrastructure companies, whereas investment in e-commerce and Internet content providers comprised less than 20 percent.

He suggested that the cooling of the Internet rush is beneficial to the industry as it forces a return to basic business. He also mentioned that many start-ups seek assistance from high-tech PR firms in their funding endeavors.

The Hoffman Agency is headquartered in San Jose, Calif., with offices in many Asian cities including Hong Kong, Beijing, Singapore and Tokyo. It plans to move its Asia-Pacific headquarters from Singapore to Hong Kong.

The Agency’s current clients include Hewlett-Packard and National Semiconductor.

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