- program's eligibility criteria, which include the extent to which a country prohibits its nationals from broadcasting U.S. copyrighted materials without permission.
- Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum: The United States encourages APEC members – some of whom have significant IPR enforcement challenges – to put in place legal regimes and enforcement systems to better combat counterfeiting and piracy. In the past year, the United States led efforts to ensure effective implementation of previously agreed-upon initiatives on IPR protection and enforcement, including the APEC Anti-Counterfeiting and Piracy Initiative and the APEC Cooperation Initiative on Patent Acquisition Procedures. In 2008, APEC Leaders and Ministers underscored the importance of continuing and building upon this work in 2009 by addressing areas such as satellite and cable signal theft, and patent examination practices in the region. The United States will work with the other APEC economies on these efforts.
- Expanded International Cooperation: USTR, in coordination with other agencies, is looking forward to continuing engagement with trading partners in bilateral, regional, and multilateral fora to improve the global IPR environment. In addition to the work listed above, we anticipate engaging with our trading partners in initiatives such as the G-8, the U.S.-EU Summit, our trilateral cooperation with Canada and Mexico, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), and other multilateral and regional fora.
Trends in Counterfeiting
Counterfeiting has evolved in recent years from a localized industry concentrated on copying high-end designer goods to a sophisticated global business involving the mass production and sale of a vast array of fake goods, including items such as counterfeit toothpaste, shampoos, razors, electronics, batteries, food and beverages, chemicals, sporting goods, automobile and airplane parts, medicines, and health care products.
Counterfeiting affects the profits of legitimate producers and impacts consumers whose lives and safety are at risk when they purchase fake goods. It also damages the economies of the countries in which it occurs by decreasing tax revenue and deterring investment. Counterfeiters generally pay no taxes or duties, and they often disregard basic standards for worker health and safety, and product quality and performance. Industry reports trends in counterfeiting including:
- A greater diversification in the types of goods that are being counterfeited, as well as the production of labels and components for these fake products. Exploiting free trade zones (FTZs), counterfeiters are establishing a global trade in these items, shipping them separately to FTZs to be assembled and distributed in another country.
- Piracy of copyrighted products in virtually all formats, as well as counterfeiting of trademarked goods, has grown rapidly because these criminal enterprises offer enormous profits and little risk. Counterfeiters and pirates require little up-front capital investment, and even if caught and charged with a crime, the penalties imposed in many countries are so low that they offer little or no deterrence.
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