Sellers of Fakes: Numbers of Customers and CTIA Findings Don T Decline
Sellers of fakes: Numbers of customers and CTIA findings don’t decline
(Continuous report of 3rd quarter of 2014)
(Prague, January 12, 2015) Inspections focused on counterfeits of various consumer goods offered in the Czech market continued in the 3rd quarter of 2014. Inspectors collected in total 12,445 pieces of products that violated certain intellectual property rights within one third of more than 400 inspections. If these products were sold, owners of intellectual property rights would be damaged by 22 million CZK. Different shortcomings were detected in another third of the inspections. In total 353 fines amounting to 3,400,400 CZK were lawfully imposed during the 3rd quarter of 2014. “Offering counterfeits of certain brands is ruled by consumers’ interest. As long as such interest lasts, the Czech Trade Inspection Authority will carry on inspecting and imposing sanctions,” said Mojmír Bezecný, the Director General of the Czech Trade Inspection Authority.
In the period from July 1 to September 30, 2014, CTIA officers inspected in total 438 workplaces and points of sale where they checked whether sellers breach prohibition of the use of deceitful commercial practices by selling and offering products or services that infringe certain intellectual property rights (pursuant to section 5 par. 2 of the Act No. 634/1992 Coll. on Consumer Protection).
Inspections of offering and selling counterfeits – 3rd quarter of 2014Inspectorate / Number of inspections / Inspections with findings / Detected breaches in %
Total / section 5 par. 2*) / Total / section 5 par. 2*)
Středočeský and Prague / 60 / 28 / 10 / 46.7% / 16.7%
Jihočeský and Vysočina / 53 / 53 / 2 / 100.0% / 3.8%
Plzeňský and Karlovarský / 173 / 147 / 68 / 85.0% / 39.3%
Ústecký and Liberecký / 62 / 52 / 27 / 83.9% / 43.6%
Královéhradecký and Pardubický / 21 / 18 / 14 / 85.7% / 66.7%
Jihomoravský and Zlínský / 10 / 10 / 10 / 100.0% / 100.0%
Moravskoslezský and Olomoucký / 59 / 39 / 19 / 66.1% / 32.2%
Total / 438 / 347 / 150 / 79.2% / 34.3%
*)Number and rate of detected violations of section 5 par. 2 of the Act No. 634/1992 Coll. on Consumer Protection that determines offering, selling and storage of products infringing certain intellectual property rights as deceitful commercial practice.
CTIA officers discovered violations of generally binding legal regulations in 347 of 438 inspections (79.2%), including 150 cases (34.3%) in which breach of prohibition of using unfair commercial practices by offering or selling products or providing services infringing certain intellectual property rights as well as storage of such products with the aim to offer or sell them were detected.
The Czech Trade Inspection Authority collaborated with other state authorities within 40 inspections focused on compliance with unfair, namely deceitful commercial practices consisting of offering or selling products or services infringing certain intellectual property rights. The following authorities participated in the inspections: the Police of the Czech Republic and Alien Police as well as employees of customs administration, appropriate trade licensing offices and bodies of hygienic surveillance.
Detected products and their structure
In total 12,445 pieces of products amounting to 22,250,984 CZK in calculated prices of originals were collected and stored out of reach of inspected persons within the inspections focused on counterfeits. Collected products were stored out of reach of inspected persons in compliance with the Act on the Czech Trade Inspection Authority.
Share of individual assortment groups within the overall number of collected counterfeits was as follows:
*) The item “other types of goods” includes various assortment of products such as fakes of toys, handbags and leather goods, fashion accessories, glass, costume jewellery, play cards, mobile phones accessories, electric appliances etc.
The graph below displays the share of selected trademarks on the overall number of collected counterfeits. Trademarks not included in the list were collected in the number of less than 200 pieces.
Imposed measures and sanctions
Based on detected violations of legal regulations, in total 353 fines amounting to 3,400,400 CZK were imposed within the inspection action. These fines include fines for other infringements of generally binding legal regulations that were detected within inspections carried out in the 3rd quarter of 2014. They mostly related to insufficient information about prices of offered products (violation of section 12 of the Act on Consumer Protection), namely in 119 cases. Violations of other provisions were less frequent.
Conclusion
Comparison of results of the 3rd quarter of 2014 with previous periods of 2014 show that some vendors still don’t comply with prohibition of unfair commercial practices as well as selling of products or provision of services infringing certain intellectual property rights. Within monitoring of the market and subsequent inspections, officers of the Czech Trade Inspection Authority continuously detect selling, offering as well as storage of counterfeits and numerous other shortcomings. Rate of detected products that violate certain intellectual property rights is stable, hence inspections aimed at fakes will also be scheduled for 2015.
Contact:Spokesperson of the CTIA Phone:+420296366233
Mgr. Jiří Fröhlich Mobile:+420602105 376
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