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Trader ordered to pay 500 pounds in Hillingdon in UK
marketmill.co.uk story:
{Qayse Nori, 22, of Normandy Drive, Hayes, appeared for sentencing at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, 31 January and was also ordered to pay £500 court costs. He pleaded guilty to nine offences at an earlier hearing on 17 January.

Nori had a licence to trade at a market in Southwark and a search of his van near his home revealed a quantity of counterfeit toys, fake designer handbags and other dodgy goods. The toys seized include Ben 10, Disney and Spiderman replicas.}

 

This is why criminals like this line of work to branch out in, the downside of getting caught does not have stiff penalties like actual drug smuggling and selling.. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

2/6/2012

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1.6 mil  Thai Baht of fake iPhones seized in Thailand
pattayadailynew.com story:
{Pattaya police arrested the owners and staff of many  mobile phone shops on the second floor of Tukcom Pattaya , South Pattaya selling copy mobile phones. The value of the seized knock-off  mobile phones is 1.6 million THB.

<snip>

The value of the seized knock-off  mobile phones is 1.6 million THB.}

Which is equivalent to $50,000,  still quite a large haul.  Thailand has it's counterfeit problems.  and apparently Apple needs to pay attention to this country, as fake iPhones can slip into the US from Thailand. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

2/2/2012

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US Embassy in Kenya starts ambitious anti-counterfeit campaign
allafrica.com story:
{Addressing a one-day sensitisation workshop at a Busia hotel yesterday, the US economic officer in Nairobi Alexander Hall said his country has planned "an ambitious programme" that will entail holding a series of meetings and other events to raise public awareness on the dangers posed by counterfeit goods. "We are focusing on issues that relate to international trade and the economic effect of the products to the country, especially the substandard ones," he said.}

Kenya is not a large counterfeiting hub, as the country itself consumes many counterfeits.  Due to poverty. The problem is that any country that is not strong in anti-counterfeiting becomes a  target.(Tony Zafiropoulos)

2/2/2012

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Fake Apple products sold in New york - Apple sues
engadget.com story:
{There may be more than a few fake Apple Stores in China, but for the moment, Cupertino's anti-KIRF crusade seems focused squarely on New York City. According to Reuters, Apple has filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against two stores in Queens, alleging that they sold unauthorized cases, headphones and other accessories for the iPhone, iPad and iPod. In the complaint, the company claims that the products in question were all emblazoned with its familiar fruit logo, along with the phrase, "Designed by Apple in California. Assembled in China." The suit also demands that one of the stores, called Apple Story (seriously), change its name to avoid confusion with the real retail outlet and that both vendors disclose full lists of people who both supplied and purchased the goods.}

Apple is trying its hardest to cut down on counterfeit products wherever it can. They are sending experts to find the counterfeits, not all of us are experts though. So we would have to find a way to authenticate the products. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

2/1/2012

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£1mil of counterfeits seized in Wembley market
london24.com story:
{This is a small part of the £1million haul of counterfeit goods seized by police when they raided Wembley Market yesterday morning.

A four-hour search of nine stalls, and a house in Midlands, resulted in the confiscation of more than 5,000 items with a street value of more than £1m.}

Another small haul of counterfeits gets caught.  It's a never ending tide. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/31/2012

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Dubai sees 28% increase in counterfeits from 2010
emirates247.com story:
{Dubai authorities locked in a clampdown on copyrights and intellectual property violations seized a whopping 580,000 fake products in 2011 and a large part of the offences involved mobile phones.}

The number of counterfeits increased 28% from the year before. Which means that Dubai in the UAEis still a conduit in the trafficking of counterfeits. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/30/2012

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13% of all fakes are Electrical products
meproducts.net blog post:
{Economists will spend the next century debating how globalization affected our economy, but there’s one area where globalization has had an undeniable impact: the significant increase in the number and range of counterfeit products being sold worldwide.

Counterfeit electrical products constitute an astonishing $300 million to $400 million crime annually. According to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), 13 percent of all counterfeit products seized are electrical products, ranking them second among all category totals.

In 2008, NECA organized an industry-wide initiative to increase awareness of the increasing risk counterfeit electrical products present. The Anti-Counterfeit Products Initiative, www.counterfeitscankill.org, is endorsed by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), the National Association of Electrical Distributors (NAED), and Underwriters Laboratory (UL)}

The stakes are definitely higher in fake electrical products. If the electrical wiring is not made to specifications it will catch fire in the right circumstances. And then instead of running the circuit it fails and causes an accident.   (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/27/2012

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NHL All Star counterfeit jerseys affect hockey teams
ottawacitizenallstar.com story:
{Picking up a cheap jersey from a street vendor this weekend could be tempting — but the national hockey organization wants you to know this does more harm than good.

“People don’t realize they’re buying counterfeits,” says Tom Prochnow, NHL vice-president of legal and business affairs. “We’re trying to educate these people specifically.”}

Counterfeits have to become a higher importance for people to truly pay attention.   (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/26/2012

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India also brought $4.4 million of counterfeit products in US
pharmabiz.com story:
{Pharmaceutical products formed the major portion of the counterfeit goods from India seized by the American authorities during the year of 2011 as India and Pakistan made it into the `top ten’ list of source countries pushing counterfeit goods into the US.

China continued to remain at the top of the list by accounting for 62 per cent of counterfeit goods seized by the US authorities during the year. India stood third, though it accounted for just 3 per cent of the goods seized after Hong Kong which contributed 18 per cent, as per the official report by the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on International trade.}

India is also increasing counterfeit products in a large way. Although China still has the lead.   (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/25/2012

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Fake Britain(blog video) shows videos on counterfeit dangers
christophernejman.blogspot.com story:
{A young boy is killed by using a fake electrical plug for his personal computer game not knowing it was fake.

Mr. Nejman has created a good blog discussing actual stories with the dangers behind counterfeit products. A faulty circuit breaker  can fail, cause a fire and then cause a death to a young boy.   (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/23/2012

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China rural agency targeting rural sellers of counterfeits
china.org.cn story:
{Counterfeit consumer products and producer goods which are closely related to farmers' lives, including home appliances and fertilizer, will be the targets of the crackdown, according to a circular jointly issued by the National Development and Reform Position and nine other ministries and offices.}

Assuming China is trying to do what this mini story suggests, It would be a step in the right direction. It is so hard to tell what is actually happening in China.   (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/22/2012

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New Jersey man caught selling counterfeit NHL jerseys
wivb.com story:
{Brian Bartoe, 36, pleaded guilty Friday to trafficking in counterfeit goods. Prosecutors say the fake jerseys, primarily Bills and Sabres, were made in China and bore counterfeit trademarks. Bartoe received them between September 2009 and April 2010 until U.S. Customs and Border Protection intercepted shipments.}

I wanted to highlight one person and their decision to sell counterfeits - this method is multiplied a hundred times across the nation and thousands of times across the world.   (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/20/2012

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Clay iPads sold in Canada
register.co.uk story:
{Canadian scammers are buying iPad 2s, replacing them in their original packaging with ZipLoc bags filled with modeling clay, "professionally shrink-wrapping" the boxes, then returning them for refunds, absconding with the precious fondleslabs.

The precisely weighted, shrinkwrapped packages containing the clay-filled bags are then resold by unwitting stores to unwitting customers such as scam victim Mark Sandhu, who bought what he thought was an iPad 2 as a Christmas gift for his wife.}

I think it is a clever counterfeit/criminal effort.  The problem with real counterfeits is that they are harder to distinguish than obviously clay iPads.  these were made to return devices and pocket the money or some other kind of scam.   (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/19/2012

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SOPA: Anti-Piracy bill - blackouts on Wikipedia/Reddit
lov-3.net story:
{SOPA, on the other hand, stands for Stop Online Piracy Act, also known as House Bill 3261 or H.R. 3261. It is a bill that was introduced in the US Congress on October 26, 2011, by House Judiciary Committee Chair Representative Lamar Smith and a bipartisan group of 12 initial co-sponsors. The bill, if made law, would expand the ability of U.S. law enforcement and copyright holders to fight online trafficking in copyrighted intellectual property and counterfeit goods. Presented to the House Judiciary Committee, it builds on the similar PRO-IP Act of 2008 and the corresponding Senate bill, the PROTECT IP Act.

Companies like Reddit and Wikipedia will go black on January 18 to protest against SOPA and PIPA because they think it will give enormous power to the government to censor the internet. }

The activists believe that shining the light on this SOPA legislation will help defeat it. It is likely that SOPA legislation has overstepped it's boundaries, although it is an attempt at curbing counterfeit goods websites the enforcement and privacy issues surrounding this is what the activists have a problem with. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/18/2012

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Indian tobacco company says: "Losing $50Billion to China counterfeits"
thecre.com story:
{Officials say that Chinese manufacturers are intensifying their efforts to “counterfeit” Da Buer (Dabur) and Indian Tobacco Company (ITC) and other Indian products selling consumer goods giant, damage the legitimacy of these brands, annual losses of up to 50 billion U.S. dollars.

“The Da Buer large number of counterfeit products from China, we carried out in China at least 20 raids, but the Chinese did not take appropriate action.” Da Buer, India’s fourth large consumer products company.}

China only takes appropriate action when it behooves themselves, by setting up high profile stings for the cameras, but when the standard counterfeit operations come along they are not as interested.   As this report indicates. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/16/2012

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Burkey pleads guilty 13 counts of copyright violations
stratfordobserver.co.uk story:
{A MAN who ran an illegal business modifying games consoles for four years claimed he didn't know what he was doing was wrong when trading standards finally caught up with him.

1/15/2012

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5 leading golf companies help shut 62 counterfeit goods golf sites
todaysgolfer.co.uk story:
{The world's leading golf equipment manufacturers have pulled together to close 62 websites offering counterfeit goods to customers.

Manufacturers including Titleist, TaylorMade, Callaway, Ping and Cleveland are part of The US Anti-Counterfeiting Working Group who have announced that a preliminary injunction has been issued by the Southern District Court of Florida to shut down 62 websites where counterfeit clubs were sold.

In 2009 Briton Gary Bellchambers was jailed for four years for his part in the world's biggest ever eBay fraud where he sold more than £2m worth of counterfeit equipment.}

This is an interesting development, the golf companies used the district court of Florida to close the counterfeit goods websites. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/13/2012

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Counterfeiting in China - at a Crisis Point
resources.alibaba.com story:
{"Counterfeiting in China has reached a crisis point." This common view is heard from many foreign executives and government officials. The problem appears to be getting worse each year: Not only is the quality of counterfeits improving, counterfeit goods are appearing in more overseas markets.

It is good to see this again, there is a page up on alibaba that has a good article up.  It is still apt today, and remember that alibaba is the ebay of China. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/12/2012

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Louis Vuitton files lawsuit against flea market in San Antonio
kutnews.org story:
{Opening arguments began this week in a lawsuit filed by luxury fashion brand Louis Vuitton against San Antonio’s Eisenhauer flea market. The French company says the flea market allowed vendors to sell counterfeit products and is seeking $18 million.

Louis Vuitton’s lawyer said in opening arguments that the company sent representatives to the Eisenhauer Market and found as many as 15 vendors selling fake Louis Vuitton products, the San Antonio Express-News reports.}

Louis Vuitton also has sued Ebay in the past for allegedly helping sell counterfeits, so this is not out of the ordinary. This is an obvious move to push flea markets across the world to quit selling fake bags masquerading as Louis Vuitton bags. 

The problem is that some of the bags are obviously fake and customers know they are not Louis Vuitton and they still buy them since they are cheaper.

 All arguments used by consumer advocates in the past in these pages. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/11/2012

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24,792 seized, 2011 US Customs - 24% increase from 2010
cbp.gov story:
{Theft of American intellectual property is a serious crime, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced today that their vigorous, ongoing efforts to protect America from the trade in counterfeit and pirated goods during fiscal year 2011 resulted in 24,792 seizures, a 24 percent increase over 2010.

Despite the significant increase in the number of seizures, the domestic value for seizures in fiscal year 2011 decreased by five percent to $178.9 million and the manufacturer’s suggested retail price declined slightly to $1.1 billion. This is primarily due to a shift toward using international mail, express courier and consolidated shipping services to import counterfeit and pirated goods.}

As the report stated, the health care fakes increased, but the value decreased. Maybe there is smaller items being counterfeited in 2011 versus 2010.  Or at least of the items faked only the smaller ones were caught. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/10/2012

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CLC seizes 60,000 pieces of sport apparel in 2011
espn.go.com story:
{Last year, more than 60,000 pieces of counterfeit merchandise valued at more than $1 million overall were seized by Collegiate Licensing Company.

So, who are these vendors?

One cited in Atlanta was the man selling the shirts with the expletives. He said he planned to keep $8 of the $20 shirt cost, with $12 going to his boss. He expected to make $1,500 to $2,000 that day before he was stopped by CLC investigators and Atlanta police for vending without a permit.}

The interesting thing is there was a conversation with a vendor, where he made $8 and the owner would make $12.  in  an area where one can make $2000 per day. It is no wonder that there are plenty of counterfeiters trying to ply their craft.

  (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/9/2012

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Counterfeits can kill or severely harm someone
scribd.com story:
{Law enforcement in Zambia seized fake shampoo containing acid

Body-builders and others buying steroids on the black market in Australia  were sold repackaged livestock steroids as human steroids}

Oumaima Semmar listed a number of items like the 2 above, and actually created a decent list of one persons counterfeit goods presentation. 

It was very good, I thought, the only problem is there are no references to any of the data.  I include it because it is plausible information as regular readers of this blog can attest in the last 2 years. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/8/2012

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China says it seized $844.5 million in counterfeits in 2011
chinadaily.com.cn story:
{China's quality supervision departments investigated and seized counterfeit goods valued at 5.33 billion yuan ($844.5 million) through law enforcement last year, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) said Thursday.

At an AQSIQ work conference, the administration's chief Zhi Shuping said that the administration's work last year focused on inspections of dairy products, liquor, meat and food additives, as well as intellectual property rights infringements.}

I wonder how many counterfeits there were actually produced in China?  Probably not just the amount seized.  If 10-20% of the total counterfeits get seized  then there were $6.4 to $7.2 Billion counterfeits created. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/6/2012

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Winter Classic in Philadelphia had $350,000 counterfeits seized
myfoxphilly.com story:
{In the wake of the 2012 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic, customs officials and the NHL seized over 1,600 counterfeit items with a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $350,000.

Approximately 150 international mail parcels were seized and nine vendors have been investigated  since December 28.}

All special sporting events get extra attention from the counterfeiters. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

1/5/2012

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$1.24 Billion of counterfeits seized in South Africa in 2011
bizcommunity.com story:
{IOL reports that Durban police have sized falsely branded clothing worth about R60-million from a container that was packed with fake Nike, Adidas, Puma, Daniel Hechter, Levi and Uzzi clothes and shoes.

The goods will be destroyed and Mdunge says that arrests in connection with the shipment are "imminent". The total value of counterfeit goods seized at the Durban harbour over the past year amounts to R10-billion}

10Billion South African  Rands is equal to $1.24 Billion. As we noted on 12/30/11 $308 million were seized, so a total of 1.24 Billion Dollars was seized in South Africa over 2011.  And as mentioned this is a huge amount for South Africa, as their GDP is much smaller than the US. (Tony Zafiropoulos)


1/4/2012

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Electronic parts are counterfeited - up to $660Billion for 2009
sgwin.com story:
{Electronic parts and components form the building blocks of all electronic devices; our lives are filled with electronic products which are full of components such as semiconductors, resistors and capacitors. The average household has dozens of devices from children’s toys to audio/visual equipment to smoke detectors, and each year we become more and more dependent on these devices.

The estimated global spending on electronic parts and components that go into all these devices we buy for 2009 is around 660 billion US dollars, so it’s easy to see why it’s caught the eye of component counterfeiters trying to get their piece of the pie through breaking the law.}

The electronic parts industry is an industry that is easily counterfeited.

(Tony Zafiropoulos)


1/3/2012

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National Defense Authorization Act 2012 law: effects anti-counterfeiting
ag-ip-news.com story:
{The International Trademark Association (INTA) welcomed in a press release the signing of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2012 into law.

 

The Act includes measures to address counterfeit military products and to provide for higher penalties to those who knowingly sell counterfeits that are intended for use by the military or that are identified as meeting military standards.}

 

So this is where Congress snuck in some legislation for anti-counterfeiting - as more details come in we will cover them. (Tony Zafiropoulos)


1/2/2012

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Happy New Year To All 2012

Let's make it one to remember.   (Tony Zafiropoulos)
 

12/31/2011

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$308 million in counterfeits seized in South Africa
ewn,co.za story:
{The South African Police Service (Saps) have confiscated counterfeit goods worth more than R2.5 billion from entering the country.

This was after Saps began with their countrywide anti-piracy 'Operation Duty Calls' in October.

Goods seized included shoes, perfumes, cigarettes, clothes and electronics. }

2.5 Billion Rand comes to $308million. For South Africa that is quite a bounty The GDP of South Africa is $357 Billion, so this confiscation was ~.1% of South African GDP.

If the US had that happen, the equivalent seizure would be $15Billion (GDP of USA is $15Trillion).   (Tony Zafiropoulos)
 

12/30/2011

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£10 million of counterfeit goods seized at heathrow airport
maltp.com story:
{Sheffield Trading Standards manager Phil Glaves said: We are dealing with big distribution networks at the moment, especially tobacco and alcohol, but were also seeing an explosion in sportswear in the run-up to the Olympics.

At Heathrow UGG drinkAirport 1,100 seizures were made of items valued at 10m in the last eight months the same as the whole of last year.
In August, 45,000 pairs of ke Ugg boots were found in container freight in Southampton, the biggest such seizure in Europe.

Phil said: Theres only a certain percentage of stuff Customs can check.
We are only a small department and we have a lot of enquiries ongoing. It does give us cause for concern.
Its big business people are importing stuff from everywhere.}

This site about Uggs are highlighting a case where the customs people in the UK agree that they are not big enough to catch all of the counterfeits. 10 million pounds of counterfeit goods were seized  this year. And that is just a drop in the bucket.  (Tony Zafiropoulos)
 

12/29/2011

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1.7 million visits redirected to fake sites
internetretailer.com story:
{Jewelry retailer Links of London has taken action against 230 web sites that were using its name to attract online shoppers or selling counterfeit versions of Links items. The campaign has increased traffic to Links of London’s e-commerce site and reduced its online advertising costs.}

1.7 million visits were redirected to fake Links of London sites.  The more aggressive online posturing helped cause the fake sites to multiply.   (Tony Zafiropoulos)
 

12/28/2011

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Louis Vuitton sues Warner Bros for fake bag use in movie
knockoffreport.com story:
{French luxury brand Louis Vuitton has filed a lawsuit against Warner Bros. over the use of a Louis Vuitton knockoff bag in "The Hangover: Part II."

According to the suit, filed in U.S. District Court in New York on Thursday, an airport scene in the film makes use of a counterfeit bag made by a company named Diophy, which is currently being sued by Louis Vuitton for trademark infringement.}

This is interesting news, you can sue the movie company for the counterfeits that they use, thus forcing more companies that are users to shoulder some of the burden for proof of authenticity.

If the company does not review the products that they buy for their sets, they may be sued when using them in scenes.  It will be interesting to see if this lawsuit will work.   But from Louis Vuitton past lawsuits this is a clear strategy of theirs. To sue everyone they can to use the authentic version or not use them.  (Tony Zafiropoulos)
 

12/27/2011

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Study investigates effects of counterfeits
scribd.com study:
{This study has been conducted on the negative effect on the good will of the brands just becauseof the counterfeit product that is present in the market. As counterfeit product does not full fillthe needs & want of the consumers as they are expecting & as a result the image & good will of the brand affected, it also has adverse effect of counterfeiting is on the economy as a whole. The presence of counterfeits might shake the confidence of shoppers in product quality beingavailable in the country “shoppers’ paradise” could get damaged. Counterfeiters, attracted by lowcosts and high margins could even push genuine retailers out of the market affected by cost and profit pressures.

<snip>

Author says about the GOODWILL, Goodwill is the difference between the value of a business enterprise as a whole and the sum of the current fair values of its identifiable tangibleand intangible net assets.}

The conclusion is at the bottom paragraph above, about the goodwill of the products and company has accumulated in the public eye.

Goodwill is necessary to make more profit, but then if one makes profit counterfeiters try to take profit away.  It is inevitable to eventually prove to the customer that your products are authentic.(Tony Zafiropoulos)

12/26/2011

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Merry Christmas to all
from Swiss Authentication

12/25/2011

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Worldwide sting nets $76million out of 121 cities
myfoxphoenix.com story:
{"Counterfeiting remains a significant problem that demands strong enforcement efforts both here and abroad," said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director John Morton.

ICE and other agencies, as well as the Mexican and South Korean governments, targeted flea markets, seaports, land ports of entry, swap meets and retail stores between Nov. 1 and Dec. 9 in 66 cities in the U.S., 55 cities in Mexico and in Seoul, South Korea. Handbags, cell phones, toys, computer software, DVDs and sports jerseys were among other items seized.}

This was a large sting operation, and was designed to create some news.  I wonder if anyone will notice  (Tony Zafiropoulos)

12/23/2011

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$77million counterfeits seized in the US by ICE
nytimes.com story:
{“They’re keeping up with the times,” said John Morton, the director of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which plans to announce Thursday that recently it has seized about 327,000 counterfeit items worth about $77 million in the United States, along with some merchandise from Mexico.

“People tend to focus on luxury goods and DVDs, and that really understates the problem,” Mr. Morton said. “We live in an age where literally everything, from medicine to air bags to circuit boards, are being counterfeited.” }
John Morton is right, everything is being counterfeited. Not just luxury goods. Including Electronics and other products that need to be of a quality that prevents accidents. (Tony Zafiropoulos)
 

12/22/2011

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US Customs seizes $171K of Christmas Lights in LA
cbp.gov story:
{ U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers assigned to the Los Angeles/Long Beach seaport complex seized 151 life-size decorative lights of Santa Claus, a snowman and a polar bear with electrical adaptors containing counterfeit Underwriters Laboratories, Inc. (UL) markings.

Products bearing counterfeit UL certification marks have not undergone this rigorous testing and certification process, and can present potential safety hazards to the end-user.

The holiday figurines were seized on Nov. 23 and 25. CBP officers discovered the infringing merchandise in two shipments arriving from China. The estimated manufacturer’s suggested retail price for the 151 units is $173,000 with an estimated domestic value of $110,000. }

Yes, when there are counterfeit lights there can be electrical problems, and with the right problem there could be fire. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

12/21/2011

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Alliance Party advocates distributing counterfeits to homeless(people in need)
allianceparty.org story:
{North Down Alliance Councillor Andrew Muir has welcomed the approach adopted by the Trading Standards service in Northern Ireland to donate counterfeit goods to charity for redistribution to homeless and vulnerable people describing it as 'imaginative' and encouraging other public bodies to consider better ways to dealing with confiscated and lost property.}

A political party in Northern Ireland is placing a slightly smaller focus on counterfeits and also redistributing the nice clothes to people who need it (homeless etc.) (Tony Zafiropoulos)
 

12/20/2011

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twitter post: some counterfeits sold at higher prices - avoids attention
twitter post:
{Counterfeit Goods being sold at higher prices to avoid being seen as obviously fake. Investigates with @adriangoldberg at 9pm. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

12/19/2011

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£1.3 Billion of fake products in UK
bbc.uk story:
{Industry advisers say not enough is being done to tackle the illicit trade, which costs the UK economy around £1.3bn a year.

They include fake branded clothing, designer jewellery and GHD hair straighteners.}

the UK has a serious counterfeit goods problem, Many places for imports to enter the country, and apparently they also stay under the radar with a reduced police presence among other things. (Tony Zafiropoulos)
 

12/18/2011

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Australia warns more counterfeits before Christmas
insideretailing.com story:
{Dodgy online dealers are taking advantage of the Christmas silly season to dupe consumers into buying fake sporting goods online.

The Australian Sporting Goods Association (ASGA) says that it has received increased reports of consumers being ripped off by dodgy online dealers selling counterfeit products.}

As Christmas nears counterfeits will increase and not just in Australia.  (Tony Zafiropoulos)
 

12/16/2011

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What is the value of counterfeit products in marketplace?

axiomsmt.com story:

{Unfortunately not in this day in age, when counterfeit products have become more prevalent in the United States then even the products they are knocking off. In the case of Consumer Goods, research shows that upwards of 70% of the goods on the market are counterfeit, causing some firms an estimated $20 billion in lost profit.

Regrettably, this is not just an epidemic in the Consumer Goods industry. It’s spreading across all sectors, from technology manufacturers, to pharmaceutical and drug production, to even vehicle manufacturing. However, there is one industry that has the potential to be the most threatening to our lives and our country’s safety. Unfortunately this industry is also the most difficult to monitor and protect. }

All industries have counterfeit products, the question is how much has the counterfeit industry invaded the legitimate Intellectual property owners.  $20 Billion in lost profit may be an understatement, or may be totally off. Some people say that the counterfeits fill a market need. the real problem is that these numbers are hard to quantify.  (Tony Zafiropoulos)

12/15/2011

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70% of fake items coming into UK come from China
uk.ibtimes.com story:
{The UK Border Agency counterfeit team at Heathrow is making huge seizures of fake products every day at the airport. According to them, 70 percent of the fake products are coming from China. Products from India.  Thailand and Turkey are also flooding the ports, the Daily Mail has reported.

"This has been our busiest year yet. We are making seizures every day and across a huge range of goods," the Daily Mail has quoted Peter Herron, member of the Border Agency counterfeit team in Heathrow, as saying.}

Unfortunately this is not a surprise, asChina has been flooding the world with their counterfeit products that employ a lot of Chinese. Sp that means many xounterfeiters hide behind the state or local government. (Tony Zafiropoulos)
 

12/14/2011

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The serious problem of Counterfeiting products

emeraldinsight.com story:

{Counterfeiting is a serious problem besetting an increasing number of industries. It affects not only products whose brand name is synonymous with its quality or flavour, but also products which require a high level of research and development, and marketing. Counterfeit merchandise cuts into profits and harms the brand owner's reputation. To be effective in eradicating counterfeiting, one also has to understand the consumer's propensity to purchase counterfeit products.}
The counterfeiter is leeching off the manufacturers efforts, including marketing and research and development.  (Tony Zafiropoulos)


12/12/2011

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If Counterfeit electrical products installed, contractor may be liable

advad.info story:

{William J. Ferguson, vice president of administration and common counsel for Babcock Energy Inc., warns unscrupulous electrical contractors who use counterfeit electrical merchandise: You shall be sued for breach of agreement.}

So now the manufacturer will sue the electrical contractor.  thereby pushing the burden of proof unto the contractor. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

12/11/2011

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Buyers of counterfeits not prosecuted in Singapore

singaporelegaladvice.com story:

{Buyers of counterfeit goods will probably not be prosecuted by law, if the purpose of the purchase is solely for personal use, although they do face the possibility of having their fake branded goods confiscated by the authorities.}

it is interesting that there is no penalty for the buyer, the manufacturer may have problems (of the counterfeits) but the buyer will just get the counterfeits confiscated. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

12/10/2011

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Saudi Arabia and China taking steps to reduce counterfeits

arabnews.com story:

{Saudi Arabia and China have agreed to prepare a blacklist of exporters and importers of counterfeit goods from China, according to a senior official of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

Speaking to Al-Eqtisadiah business daily, he said the new agreement would be implemented based on a previous agreement signed between Beijing and the European Union under which all counterfeit Chinese products would be banned in EU states and stringent punitive measures taken against those involved in their trade.}

Saudi Arabia does not want to be a conduit like UAE, and thus is making this agreement.  (Tony Zafiropoulos)

12/9/2011

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Counterfeits can be dangerous - beware of what you buy

mirror.co.uk story:

{Consumer group Which? issued the warning after investigating fake items on the market.
12/8/2011

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$446k in counterfeits seized in LA

dailynews.com story:

{As a result of a six-month investigation titled Operation Bell Bottoms II, authorities in November arrested 10 people, and seized $446,000 in counterfeit goods and $23,000 in cash.

Counterfeiters, who don't pay sales taxes, cost the retail industry $2 billion in losses and $5.2 billion in overall lost revenue to L.A. County in 2005, according to the L.A. County Economic Development Corp.

Internet piracy and movie bootlegs have caused the loss of 106,000 jobs across nine sectors, for a total of $4.4billion in lost wages annually in L.A. alone, according to the LAEDC.}

Another decent sized counterfeit bust near the Western US ports area.  (Tony Zafiropoulos)

12/7/2011

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Counterfeits seized near Nova Scotia, Canada

theguardian.pe.ca story:

{RCMP has seized counterfeit products from a store in Summerside.

The seizure took place on Friday after officers from the "L" Division Federal Enforcement Section noticed brand name items for sale at the store which are only sold with the company's official store or website.}

Yes, all manner of police officers now look out for counterfeit products. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

12/6/2011

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NY Times video chronicles Dubai as a conduit for counterfeits

nytimes video story:

{Massive free trade zones like those in Dubai are being used by counterfeiters to smuggle fake drugs from China to Europe and the United States.}

Dubai is definitely a conduit - because it is a free trade zone and thus is one of the areas around the world where counterfeiters use to push their product. Very interesting video (Tony Zafiropoulos)

12/5/2011

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Dubai seizes 3 tons of counterfeits

arabianbusiness.com story:

{Dubai Customs inspectors said on Sunday they had foiled a bid to bring a huge quantity of counterfeit goods into the country.

The three-tonne cargo arrived in the emirate from an Asian country and was found to contain large quantities of products contrary to what was written in the customs declaration.

He added that tests revealed that the international trademarks were found to be counterfeits.}

Dubai is one of the conduits into the western markets, so this is not surprising.  It is welcome news, the more counterfeit products are off the market the better. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

12/4/2011

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Counterfeit products aren't being seized if not destined for EU

businessweek.com story:

{Nokia Oyj may lose a bid to force the U.K. to seize fake handsets after the European Union’s top court said customs officials can only detain counterfeit products when there is some proof they will be delivered within the EU.

Nokia is challenging the U.K.’s position that customs officials can’t seize fake products in transit through the EU without proof they will actually end up in one of the region’s countries. Espoo, Finland-based Nokia argued this risks making the EU a “safe harbor” for counterfeiters.

U.K. customs officials stopped a shipment of about 400 fake Nokia mobile-phone handsets and accessories in transit from Hong Kong to Colombia. While Nokia, the world’s largest maker of mobile phones, said the products were fakes, the U.K. officials said they couldn’t intercept them because they lacked evidence that they would be diverted back into the EU}

This is interesting, the court seems to think that international traffic does not go back to the EU. Sometimes traffic can't be controlled, and if the products are fake they should be intercepted.  Sometimes it takes a little while before the product comes back to the EU. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

12/2/2011

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Customs opening industry specific import entry centers

cbp.gov press release:

{U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced today the establishment of two industry-specific centers: the Center of Excellence and Expertise – Electronics in Los Angeles and the Center of Excellence and Expertise – Pharmaceuticals in New York.

Initially, the centers will serve as a single point of processing for businesses enrolled in CBP’s trusted shipper programs, the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) and the Importer Self-Assessment (ISA).

The centers will also serve as a resource to the broader trade community and to CBP’s U.S. government partners; center personnel will answer questions, provide information and develop trade facilitation strategies to address uniformity and compliance concerns}

Hopefully Intellectual property investigation will still be done in these centers, although it seems that the 'trusted' shippers will be given wide latitude. (Tony Zafiropoulos)

12/1/2011