COUNTERFEIT PRODUCTS ONLINE. The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) warns the public (October 23) against the proliferation of fake and counterfeited products sold online during a press conference in Davao City on Wednesday. Data from IPOPHL reveal that a total of PHP23.5 billion worth of counterfeited items were seized by authorities in 2018. (PNA photo by Che Palicte)
DAVAO CITY -- The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) warned the public on Wednesday against the proliferation of fake and counterfeit products sold online.
Lawyer Teodoro Pascua, IPOPHL deputy director-general, said the agency is set to create the National Committee on Intellectual Property Rights (NCIPR) to crack down on the online selling and distribution of counterfeit and pirated goods as government regulatory agencies close in on unfettered selling of contraband goods.
Pascua said the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is also scheduled to gather various agencies to dialogue with online sellers such as Lazada, Zalora, Shopee, among others.
“They will be asked about their intellectual property policy as well as the assurance that the products they are selling are genuine,” he said, adding DTI will soon impose a registration system for online sellers for proper accreditation.
“Buyers should be aware that branded products sold online with much lower prices are not genuine,” Pascua added.
He also encouraged the public to be cautious of the proliferation of fake products.
“Let us join hands to run them out of business,” he said.
Data from IPOPHL revealed that a total of PHP23.5 billion worth of counterfeited items were seized by authorities in 2018; for this year, the figure so far is around PHP1.8 billion.
Chester Arturo Cinco, Intellectual Property Rights division chief, said the reason for the decrease is due to the non-submission of reports from the concerned agencies.
Cinco said the top five counterfeited products or pirated goods confiscated are cigarettes and alcohol; pharmaceuticals and personal care products; handbags and wallets; optical media; and footwear.
Seven convictions were reported by the Department of Justice (DOJ) in 2018; 18 from January to October this year.
Pascua said the government is losing billions in revenues as most of the online dealers are non-taxpayers.
He said consumers should consider a product to be counterfeit if it is sold at a lower price than the original item.
“Beware of those cosmetics with foreign language. The manufacturer should provide translation if it will be sold in our country,” Pascua said.
He added that the Korean Embassy has requested IPOPHL to stop the selling of counterfeit cosmetics that are made to appear as if the products are from South Korea. (PNA)
