ENFORCEMENT
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eop_ipec_jointstrategicplan_hi-res
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Joint Strategic Plan on Intellectual Property Enforcement<br />
Piracy continues to evolve with technology, and<br />
illicit actors have adapted to continue to evade law<br />
enforcement tactics, subjecting artists and the creative<br />
communities to economic losses and other harms. As<br />
technology continues to advance, new and different<br />
forms of digital piracy will likely emerge, generating<br />
more problems for copyright owners and creating new<br />
technological and legal issues unless appropriate and<br />
agile strategic actions are commenced. 40<br />
2. Schemes Employed to Facilitate Illicit Trade<br />
in Counterfeit Goods.<br />
Whether the intellectual property right at issue is a<br />
trademark, copyrighted content, a patented invention or<br />
design, a trade secret, or a combination of one or more<br />
rights, the illicit trader seeks to misappropriate another’s<br />
right and investment by producing and/or selling<br />
products as if they were genuine (e.g., originating from<br />
the rights holder or otherwise authorized, such as by a<br />
license agreement).<br />
Along with the advent and many benefits of new<br />
technologies, advanced methods of manufacturing<br />
and distribution, and the rise of e-commerce, these<br />
developments have also enabled counterfeit and pirated<br />
goods to become increasingly sophisticated, prevalent,<br />
and hard to detect. 41 Counterfeiters invest their resources<br />
in high-value products, affecting everyone along the<br />
supply chain, from manufacturer, to distributor, to retailer,<br />
and ultimately to the consumer.<br />
Products from every industry—from food to<br />
personal care products, automotive parts to medicines,<br />
electronics to footwear, extension cords to sunglasses,<br />
software to jewelry—are being counterfeited<br />
today. 42 The U.S. Department of Homeland Security<br />
(DHS) seizes counterfeit products in more than 600<br />
different product categories (FIG.10). Everything<br />
that can be faked is being faked, and consumers are<br />
often helpless to discern legitimate products from<br />
illegitimate ones based on photos on e-commerce<br />
sites, or even with the product in hand in traditional<br />
brick-and-mortar stores.<br />
FIG. 10: Diversity of Counterfeit Products in the Marketplace.<br />
SECTION 1<br />
26