Developing companies' capability for innovation and R&D was part of the Singaporean government's Budget plans for the coming year.

Part of the Resilience Package will see the Government spending $130 million on enhancing grants and training schemes to encourage enterprises across various sectors to refresh and develop new capabilities.

It will also widen the scope of activities that qualify for grants.

There will also be increased support for the media and digital entertainment industry where opportunities are growing rapidly.

A $230 million Singapore Media Fusion (SMF) fund will be set up to provide grants to help local enterprises export content, applications and services, as well as to build up a world-class media talent base.

This will complement plans to develop Mediapolis at One-North, which will help position Singapore as a leading media hub in Asia.

In his speech yesterday, Finance Minister Mr. Tharman Shanmugaratnam also said that Singapore is an emerging hub for firms in the interactive digital media arena.

He brought up the example of local company Razer which launched a new pro-gaming mouse primed for the international gaming market.

"Two weeks ago for example, gaming peripherals company Razer launched the Razer Mamba, using advanced proprietary technologies developed out of Singapore. Selling for USD$130 - it's not your everyday mouse. It is the fastest gaming mouse in the world."

Media and digital entertainment businesses can also write down the cost of acquiring intellectual property rights in two years instead of five years, the Finance Minister said. This is to encourage such companies to exploit intellectual property from Singapore.