All platform projects require industry sponsorship of at least 10% of the total project cost from at least one company, while sponsorship requirement is not mandatory for seed projects. Industry sponsorship requirement for platform projects may be waived if they are initiated by Government bureaux/departments and statutory bodies of Hong Kong.

A company (both local and non-local) may contribute cash and/or in-kind sponsorship to ITSP (Platform & Seed) projects to indicate support. Eligible sponsors may apply for Research and Development Cash Rebate Scheme but will not be eligible to own the intellectual property rights generated from the projects (if any).

ITSP (Platform & Seed) focuses on supporting two types of R&D projects, namely platform and seed projects. Platform projects refer to applied R&D projects which aim to benefit the industry collectively or certain sectors of it and have potential for commercialisation. Seed projects are exploratory and forward-looking in nature which provide the foundation for future applied R&D projects.

The majority of the R&D work of a project should be conducted within Hong Kong. However, given the close ties between Hong Kong and the Mainland, up to 50% of the R&D work of the project can be conducted (and relevant expenditure incurred) in the Mainland. Where certain R&D tasks need to be conducted outside Hong Kong (other than the Mainland), the applicant should provide justifications and seek prior approval from ITC.

As a general rule, the IP rights generated from a ITSP (Platform & Seed) project will be vested with the lead applicant (i.e. an R&D Centre¹ or a designated local public research institute²). A company as an industry sponsor may enjoy favourable terms in using project results commensurate with the level of its contribution, such as early access to the R&D results, discount in future licensing fees, etc.