The Global Fight Against Counterfeits: Business Reality & Enforcement Strategies

Counterfeit products are an enormous problem for businesses all over the world, from consumer goods, to software, to pharmaceuticals, counterfeits have become nearly ubiquitous.

Counterfeiters easily (and conservatively) cost brand owners many hundreds of billions of dollars each year. Given the low risk of getting caught, high-profit margins, and often lackluster and uncoordinated enforcement regimes, fighting counterfeits is an ever-growing challenge for brand owners. Effective enforcement measures require proactivity.

Brand owners need best-in-class and evolving IP enforcement strategies to maintain consumer trust, ensure product safety, and avoid brand value erosion. But with budgets tighter than ever, it is imperative for IP departments to demonstrate to the C-suite that anti-counterfeiting strategies offer a valuable, robust, and cost-effective solution.

Hear from Gene Quinn, President & CEO of IPWatchdog, Inc., in a wide-ranging conversation about current trends in the fight against counterfeits, best practices to deliver a return on investment in the fight against fakes, and solutions for proactively taking the fight to the copyists in what often feels like a game of whack-a-mole. Gene is joined by Alaina van Horn, Chief of the Intellectual Property Enforcement (IPE) Branch of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and Jenny Barker, Director, Global Anti-Counterfeiting, GlaxoSmithKline.

In addition to audience questions, the panel discussed:

• The sophistication of international counterfeit operations and distribution challenges used by counterfeiters today.
• The importance of working with governmental agencies and border authorities as a part of any effective global strategy.
• How the “whack-a-mole” type monitoring brand owners must perform is becoming increasingly difficult, although necessary, and ways to prioritize budget spend for the biggest impact.
• How social media platforms in combination with web chat applications such as WhatsApp or Telegram greatly contribute to transactions of counterfeit products.
• The growing problem of counterfeits in developing markets.