About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

No. 174 Managing Intell. Prop. 55 (2007)
How to Win Friends and Influence People

handle is hein.journals/manintpr174 and id is 57 raw text is: How to win friends and influence people In the battle to cut demand for fakes, some public education campaigns are more successful that others. LiiAna Andreano assesses the results F The global market for fakes could . . be as high as $200 billion a year - larger than the national GDPs of e m ir about 150 economies, estimates i wa I the OECD. With the counterfeiting 0 industry grossing those kinds of rev- 7i enues, consumer acceptance of knokoffs s14 a hasreached a critical point, and one that is only likely to accelerate. In the past decade, every one from the Recording Industry Associatioi of America to rap star Diddy (formerly Puff Daddy) has tried to raise awareness about the issue. But their campaigns have often fallen on deaf ears. What is it then, that makes a public outreach campaign successful? Here we take a look at how IP and public relations departments are banding together to corn- bat fakes, and what - if anything - they are telling consumers. Open source it A mixture of apprehension over brand degradation and concern over giving counterfeiters even more crucial information leads many companies to avoid public education campaigns altogether. But, as the digital era demands more and more transparency from businesses, some IP specialists believe that addressing consumers directly is an important part of deterring people from purchasing counterfeits. Two-fifths of Canadians surveyed by market research company Poflara this year openly acknowledged buying fakes. Twenty-eight percent of these respon- dents did so knowingly, while 12% said they found our later. This is a dismaying number, much higher than expected, says Brian Isaac, chair of the Canadian Anti-Counterfeiting Network (CACN) Legislation Committee. It shows that our government's failure to effectively address intellectual property crime has led to wide -spread acceptance of product counterfeiting. Consumers are emigrating to the fake frontier en masse, and if the black mar- ket is to be stopped, it is increasingly apparent that attacking distribution channels is not enough. Those in favour of being more open about the problem of counterfeiting sug- gest that, like the war on drugs, brand owners need to get citizens thinking Just Say No. I think [brands] remain silent because they believe if they acknowledge it, it will soil their reputations, which they have so carefully honed, says Dana Thomas, author of New York Times best- seller Deluxe, an account of the luxury goods industry. Thomas accompanied investigators on raids in counterfeit fac- tories in China for the book, and believes that IP owners could benefit from being more outspoken about fakes. This is her suggestion for going on the record: By talking about the ways they are fighting and about their successes, and talking frankly about the evils of counterfeiting - the human traf- ticking, the child labour, the money laundering, the funding of ter- rorism. They should flip the focus on the bad guys, says Thomas. Opinions in corporate [P departments are shifting towards a more open dialogue about fakes, with a select few IP owners at the helm of this change. Adopting an accessible stance on The Authentics Foundation Myauthenrics.com is run by the Aurhemics Foundation, an interational non- poiorazain deoedt raising public awareness about countIerfeiting. It is the first safe space online wher II owners and consumners can come togeter to discuss and debe the issue. The site includes forums where users can chat, infor- mario on how to spot fakes, and blog; with regular entries on counterkur goods. Our newv website, ww w.nsyautens.eom, is meant to rae a voutlifid! and honest approach to the serious issue of counterfeit goods, says co-founder Frederick Moster. It is nor didat and while it provides intonation on the link bewenfkes and child labour or other crimes it also pros ide user forums where readers can dispute or discuss anything the1y'ie red on the site? Rater thnmo~u~ c n co-f rTothy head of the Gdobai nrcllecuial rprySrtg Center, PC, says that die websire us a more cohesive channel through which any IP owners are free to speak. The foundation haes wokdto make its websire as cosmrfriendly as possible, re-writinglgls into more acccssible, understan~dable lantguage for those who are nor familiar with the terminolog of irteetia property, The sire includes muilnmedua such as pod- casts on consumer opinions of fakes and design piracy, among other thinigs. It was recently featured in the eBas Against Counterfeits campaigns. At e~as' we are committed to fighting counrteits as they are illegal and notf wel- come on eBay,; says Nichola Sharpe senior public relations manager at the online auction site, As our business hias grown and the challenges of global cutretn have bee more complex, copr-ation with Law enocmn and rights owners has become more critical, It is under the sam spirit of collabor'ation that we partner with like unedasscations, suc as The AuretisFoundation to educate consumers. www.managingip.com November 2007,55

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most