Last week, U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced that they seized $272.7 million in counterfeit and pirated goods in 2008. While the figure is impressive, you have to wonder how much is still getting by the authorities. The good news is that it appears U.S. Customs is getting much better at identifying and taking action to seize shipments.
CBP Commissioner W. Ralph Basham stated the following in the press release, “CBP is improving the effectiveness of IPR enforcement by focusing on imports at high risk for counterfeiting and piracy, especially those that threaten the health, safety or security of the American people.”
The release specifically credits working with companies to identify and prosecute counterfeiters. Proactively monitoring your industry’s imports with
U.S. Customs data is one of the ways that you can protect your brands’ intellectual property. To learn more about how Zepol's customers are using trade data to stop
piracy, read our case study based on the experiences of our customers: “
International Law Firms Discovering Keys to Cases”.
CBP stated that the top commodity seized was Footwear, accounting for 38% of IPR seizures. 81% of the value of the seized goods was from China. Below are the top 10 countries of origin and products seized in 2008:
Top Ten Countries of Origin of Seized Commodities:
- China
- India
- Hong Kong
- Taiwan
- Korea
- Dominican Republic
- Pakistan
- Vietnam
- United Arab Emirates
- Indonesia
Top Ten Commodities Seized:
- Footwear
- Handbags/Wallets/Backpacks
- Pharmaceuticals
- Wearing Apparel
- Consumer Electronics/Electrical Articles
- Sunglasses/Parts
- Computers/Technology Components
- Perfumes/Colognes
- Cigarettes
- Media
To read the full release, follow this link:
Customs IPR Seizures.