The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) has seized P1.4 billion worth of counterfeit goods as of September, an 82.5-percent plunge from last year’s haul during the same period.
The drop in the value of seized counterfeit goods was attributed to the low-value pirated items that were mostly confiscated this year. IPOPHL Deputy Director General Allan Gepty said the dive in the value of seizures does not reflect the efficiency of enforcement, but points to the increase of cheaper counterfeits.
“If we are able to seize high-value items like watches, isang container lang malaki na ’yung haul non but the value has been very fluid because the usual goods we’ve been able to get are apparel, medicine and garments. Last year we had food items and watches. It really depends sa retail price of the product,” Gepty said.
Gepty added that the IPOPHL seized P8 billion worth of goods during the same nine-month period last year.
The Bureau of Customs and other agencies tasked to enforce the campaign against pirated goods have yet to submit the data to IPOPHL, Gepty added. The IPOPHL closed out 2014 with P13 billion worth of fake goods seized.
