Gov’t seizes P8.2B worth of fake, pirated goods

The government seized P8.2 billion worth of counterfeit and pirated goods last year, the largest haul since 2014, the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) said.

In a statement on Monday, IPOPHL said these fake goods were seized by various agencies under the National Committee on Intellectual Property Rights (NCIPR) last year, an increase of close to 26 percent from 2016.

Of last year’s figure, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) accounted for for more than 70 percent of goods seized or P5.8 billion.

According to NCIPR data, the top counterfeit products seized were electronics, optical media, and pharmaceutical and personal care products.

This was a departure from the trend seen in the past two years, which saw jewelry and watches as the top counterfeited commodities.

“As this reflects the growing market demand for electronic goods and products involving public health and safety, we warn the public to be wary of counterfeiters exploiting this high demand,” said IPOPHL Director General Josephine Santiago.

Based on the data submitted by NCIPR members Philippine National Police (PNP) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), a total of 309 search warrants were implemented and the BOC issued 16 warrants of seizure and detention last year.

The Optical Media Board (OMB), meanwhile, conducted 2,770 inspections in 2017.