A recently published research conducted by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) in 2017 shows that 7 % of EU citizens are buying counterfeits deliberately and people's tolerance to intellectual property right (IPR) infringements has increased. In order to inform the public about IPR infringements and the following harm to the economy, employment and human health it may entail, the Patent Office of the Republic of Latvia together with the Ministry of Justice, the National Customs Board of the State Revenue Service, the State Police of Latvia and the Trade and Service Control Centre continues the awareness raising campaign “Fake Reality”.
According to the data gained from the National Customs Board – in the first nine months of the year 2018 the top categories for detained articles were footwear (78 %), counterfeit labels and packages (18 %), while 2 % – mobile phones and the accessories.
According to the latest EUIPO data – trade in counterfeit and pirated goods in Latvia leads to a loss of EUR 145 million in 13 industries each year. Industries with a high prevalence of counterfeit goods, such as clothing and footwear, cosmetics, medicines, jewellery and watches – are the most popular for Christmas gifts.
“Nowadays, not only clothes, watches and handbags are being counterfeited, but also machine parts, electric appliances, medicines, toys and cosmetics. The counterfeiters either attempt to deceive the consumer into thinking they are purchasing a legitimate item or convince the consumer that they could deceive others with the imitation. Counterfeits don't conform to safety regulations, they can pose a serious threat to human health and safety. Therefore, before making a purchase, make sure that you're buying an original,” emphasized the Director of the Latvian Patent Office Mr. Sandris Laganovskis.
The Customs data shows that the number of the detentions over the last nine months has increased by 17 %. Over the past nine months of the year 2018 – 63579 items of counterfeit goods were detained, which, in comparison with 2017, is by 9398 units more. China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Turkey are the main sources of provenance for goods suspected of infringing one or more IPR arriving in the EU. Over the past years, sales were mostly done online, while the number of online marketplaces selling counterfeit goods continue to grow; therefore, most often counterfeit goods are detected by customs directly in postal and courier shipments. In terms of number of seizures, trafficking fakes by small parcels is growing, becoming a significant problem in terms of enforcement. The small parcels used by counterfeiters for trafficking are shipped either through postal or express services.
“The Christmas Season is approaching fast and the question about Christmas gifts arises. Those who don`t like to shop around in stores can find gifts online without leaving home, as internet nowadays offers limitless choices. Unfortunately, among the goods there are offers that encourage you to buy well-known and popular brands at incredibly low prices,” points the Acting Deputy Director General for Customs Issues, Director of the National Customs Board Ingrīda Gulbe-Otaņķe. “In order to protect consumers from the dangers related to counterfeit and pirated products, the Latvian Customs Board perform customs control measures. One of the main objectives of such measures is to combat unfair competition – by ensuring the protection of intellectual property rights. If the customs seizes counterfeit goods in postal parcels, the recipient doesn`t receive the purchased good – the counterfeit goods are being detained and destroyed. In the end, the reckless customer is three times dissatisfied – the money is issued, the order will not come, and the search for gifts must continue.”