P2.7B worth of pirated goods seized as of Nov Ronnel Domingo Inquirer
December 15, 2007
MANILA, Philippines--Various government agencies seized P2.7 billion worth of pirated products from January to November, the National Committee for Intellectual Property Rights (NCIPR) reported Friday.
Concerted efforts to go after intellectual property right violators have led to seizure of P5.25 billion worth of pirated goods since the NCIPR was set up in 2005, said Adrian Cristobal Jr., director general of the committee’s lead agency, Intellectual Property Office.
The committee includes the Bureau of Customs, National Bureau of Investigation, Optical Media Board, and Philippine National Police.
The most common rip-off products seized by these agencies include various optical media products and kits -- related to movies and music -- and branded apparel, fashion accessories, bags, cosmetics, perfumes, food, medicines, cleaning agents, software, computers, cable TV equipment, petroleum tanks, automobile parts and steel sheets.
The Bureau of Customs seized products valued at P1.09 billion, the Optical Media Board P1.02 billion, the Philippine National Police P400.7 million, and the National Bureau of Investigation P238 million, Cristobal said.
He noted that counterfeit products “threaten public health and safety as well as compete unfairly with legitimate businesses, cheat government of taxes, and weaken inventor confidence in our economy.”
“Beyond the raids conducted for pirated intellectual property products, a sound IP [intellectual property] environment of the country means tapping the creativity of the Filipinos, and to ensure that the IP system promotes innovation,” he added.
Cristobal also said the Intellectual Property Office led the crafting of the recently launched national IP policy strategy aimed at fostering a competitive and creative country that uses IP as a strategic tool for national development. Edited by INQUIRER.net
