With printing technology being able to print almost anything, counterfeiting FMCG and automobiles products has become child’s play. There’s also a known and unknown complicity by the consumer who does not mind the ‘bargain’. In such a bleak scenario, what is the way to fight piracy and counterfeiting of FMCG goods, or why should it be fought in the first place?
Panels representing the FMCG and automobile industry debated and discussed the same on the second day of the “4th International Conference on Counterfeiting & Piracy: Measuring and addressing the Cost of the 21st Century Crime,” organized by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) at Taj Hotel.
Stating the ignored-obvious Mr. O S Sadhwani, Joint commissioner - Law, Government of Maharashtra said, “One simple reason to fight counterfeiting is because when someone buys such a product but is not satisfied, it affects the brand adversely in the long run. Sadly the customer might not know that the product is a counterfeit.” His solution for fighting it was simple, but complex in its coordination, “Three stake holders lose to counterfeiting - manufacturers, govt. and consumer. They have to come together. At manufacturing level, they should be able to identify a counterfeit that can be done by introducing tacit identifiers in the packaging which only a select field staff would know.” He stressed upon the need for manufacturers to maintain integrity of supply chain, the printer who prints and one who makes the packaging material. “Even the rejected material should be discarded and destroyed.”
One simple but the obvious way was to keep a check on profits and loses. “If you are suddenly showing loses at a particular place, chances are that a counterfeit of your product has made its way there.” There was also a need to change the packaging material often to fool counterfeiters.
The media plays a very crucial role in the fight against counterfeiting and piracy. It is up to them to publicize raids and punishments, thus discouraging counterfeiters.
Yet, despite these measures often counterfeit products do make their way into the supply chain. That is where the law comes into the picture. Elaborating on the legal issues to curb them, Mr. Pravin Anand, Patent Attorney, Anand & Anand Advocates, said, “Somewhat of a revolution is taking place in the Indian judicial system that are not so well known.” He gave examples where video recordings has been made permissible in court, where there is no longer a need to file a written statement, a limit was imposed on time for filing replies, limiting witnesses to a case, courts working on Saturdays etc. This has led to the completion of IP violation cases in as less as 6 months.
Yet no one can deny that prevention is the best cure. If counterfeiting is fought at the point of origin i.e. during exports of goods, it becomes easier to nab. Sadly most countries to increase profits of their Customs department raid only imports. Mr. Michael Ellis, Head of Brand Protection, Beiersdorf, informed of an interesting statistic about China, “People usually blame China for counterfeit products. Ironically China, along with Argentina, is the only one of the two countries in the world where customs check exports, rather than imports. The result - 99.96% of all counterfeiting seizures in China was from its exports.”
Sadly that is not the drive of the Indian govt. complained Mr. Anubhav Jain, Brand Protection, South Asia, Mercedes-Benz India Pvt Ltd. “For the Indian govt. unlike the Chinese govt. export of counterfeiters is a non-issue because they believe that even counterfeits generate employment opportunities. The Chinese believed the same once, but now understand that it is much more profitable for everyone to prevent it proactively,” he said.
Counterfeiting in the automobile industry, as in the pharma industry, is a serious matter with counterfeit products taking many lives. The solution, Prof. Sudhir Gupte, Managing Committee Member, SAE India, believes is: “for legal manufacturers to constantly evolve. As we tried to create our own niche market, the counterfeiters have created their own with an excellent distribution network. We find ways to combat the menace, but they find new ways to counterfeit.”
On the other spectrum he informed that sometimes the legal manufacturers themselves are to be blamed as led by greed they have produced substandard parts so that money can be made out of their sale. This has led to creation of counterfeiters.
Ironically, as regards auto spare parts, often the counterfeit part is more expensive than the original. Thus, besides enforcement and laws, there are often simpler solutions. Prof. Gupte suggested one. “Spare parts should be put on sale in a company’s website, giving the customer a way to know the price and buy them from a legitimate source.”
Different types of counterfeiting, is thus dependent on the kind of problem being faced. And both the panels were unanimous in one thing: that if this menace has to be fought, a paradigm shift is required from all the stakeholders – manufacturers, govt. and customers to effectively address, and curb the cancerous growth of piracy and counterfeiting.
