Walking the talk

For the first time, were flagged by the European Commission in its latest Counterfeit and Piracy Watch List

It’s just the start of 2023 and yet January has been an action-filled month for IPOPHL, the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines, with IP issues abuzz in various spheres of public discussion.

Of course, making it in the headlines was news that markets in the Philippines, for the first time, were flagged by the European Commission in its latest Counterfeit and Piracy Watch List. Specifically, these were the markets of Baclaran, Divisoria, the Greenhills Shopping Center, and Cartimar Shopping Center.

This report signals the colossal task ahead for the National Committee on IP Rights for two reasons.

First is because we’re talking about established and vibrant commercial hubs long known for selling products well below average market prices. These products, although potentially and very likely counterfeit, form the very part of their competitive advantage against other markets. In a short-term business perspective that looks solely upon profits, letting up on protecting this competitive advantage will be a hard sell.

We understand that a degree of guidance is required to help sellers shift toward better business practices. IPOPHL will take the lead in educating them about the harm of counterfeit products to the health and lives of consumers and long-term economic growth.

But when our appeals fall on deaf ears, inevitably, restoring order will require concrete actions. And IPOPHL, as acting chair of the NCIPR, is committed to showing that IP violators cannot elude the long arm of the law.

Another reason that makes the task a tall order is the fact that the supply of products follows the demand curve.

Even if we succeed in cleaning up the markets of Baclaran, Divisoria, Greenhills and Cartimar, buyers may simply go scout for other markets that offer counterfeit products. And we know that one channel they can easily turn to is the online market that has been infested with severe counterfeiting and content piracy activities.

IPOPHL recently took part in a consultation held by the Department of Trade and Industry’s e-Commerce Program Office for the drafting of the E-Commerce Roadmap 2023-2025. The discussion, joined by several creative economy players, shone a light on persistent content piracy issues gripping them and preventing them from realizing the profit-maximizing potential of their IP creations released online.

In a separate event, Rex Education, formerly Rex Book Store, aired last month its grievances against piracy in its Stop Piracy Campaign, which IPOPHL recently and gladly became part of.

Our fight against activities that violate IP rights is a fight for our morals as a people.

Rex Education Chairman, Atty. Dominador Buhain, and Chief External Affairs Officer Danda Crimelda Buhain touchingly talked about all the hard work that comes with each page of their learning materials, from the research work to ensure the accuracy of information to laying down the information in a language easily understandable to young learners.

At both events, we were shown that a seismic shift has to occur on the consumer side. If effective marketing campaigns appeal to their emotions, we have to appeal to their morals.

Our fight against activities that violate IP rights is a fight for our morals as a people. What kind of businesses should we be supporting and allowing to thrive? The ones that just steal from others’ labor or the ones that inspire us to create IP assets we can proudly call our own?

Counterfeit products and pirated content may be attractive to buy for their cheapness but their prices will be exceeded several times by the cost to our people, environment, and values in the long run.

Hopefully, IPOPHL can sustain this initial interest and dialogues on IP throughout the year. But more than the talks, we hope to see more supply chains of counterfeiting and piracy ending with consumers in whom we can deeply instill the value of respecting others’ creations. This will bring us hope more than anything else.