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Fight against counterfeits still challenging
The real stories about the challenges faced by enterprises and authorities in the fight against fake products were brought up at a seminar in HCMC late last week on the drawnout struggle against counterfeits and trade fraud.
Many firms said that when their products recorded high sales volumes, they would be immediately counterfeited using sophisticated techniques, more attractive packaging than the genuine and even anti-counterfeit seals.
Businesses have incurred tremendous losses while the authorities are still struggling in this fight. The reasons pointed out at the seminar were mainly the lack of a mechanism and of human resources, and the ambiguity of regulations.
Nguyen Huu Vinh, deputy head of the administrative and human resources department of LG Vina Cosmetics Co. Ltd., the owner of Essance, Ohui and Whoo brands, said bootleg products had hurt the reputation of the company and impacted on its revenue. LG Vina sales last year failed to meet the target, at 70- 75%, and the reason was counterfeit products.
Vinh compared the fight against counterfeit products to that of Don Quixote against the windmill because of a wide variety of fake goods available on the market.
Essance products used to be counterfeited most as this is a popular and affordable brand, Vinh said. However, unlike the past when it was faked in HCMC and neighboring provinces, it is now counterfeited in China, then smuggled into Vietnam.
“We have that conclusion for the design and packaging of the counterfeit look sophisticated, or even more beautiful than the genuine. The Essance packaging we ordered in South Korea had a defect, but this could not be seen on the packaging of the fake,” Vinh said.
Nguyen Ba Cuong Truc, sales manager of Nghia Nippers, said that on November 15, the company coordinated with the authorities to inspect two stores in Hanoi. The counterfeit products seized were not numerous but the way they were distributed was diverse, with some places selling 100% fake items and others mixing the fake and the genuine to deceive consumers.
Truc said snap inspections of suspected outlets were often undertaken and that retailers usually signed deals with suppliers to commit to refrain from selling fake goods but it was impossible to check whether they abided by their commitments.
The crux of the issue is that selling genuine goods with a commission or discount is not as profitable as fake items. This has made it extremely hard to fight the trading and transport of counterfeited goods.
Nghia Nippers does not tolerate those of its sales agents breaking their commitments by vending fake products and at the same time it helps the consumer distinguish the real and the fake.
Speaking to the Daily, lawyer Chau Huy Quang of law firm LCT, said one of the current major problems was the prevalence of faked anti-counterfeit seals. This is what worries the corporate sector most, Quang said.
Lawyer Tran Hai Duc added that in fact, there were cases in which enterprises had their own products counterfeited in China, and then imported back into Vietnam for labeling and sale to make handsome profits.
Do Huu Quang, deputy director of the Market Monitoring Department, told the seminar that despite the many efforts taken by the department, police, customs and border guards, counterfeit products had been able to make their way into the domestic market.
The anti-fake fight has been difficult due to several reasons, he said. An incomplete legal framework, reflected by the inconsistent regulations, makes it difficult to detect and tackle counterfeit goods.
The sanctions stipulated in several documents are inconsistent and overlap others. As for the enforcement mechanism, there is a lack of clear-cut and strict regulations on the coordination between different state agencies, leading to irresponsibility.
The mechanism for treating violations of intellectual property rights also differs between agencies while the capability of officials is limited.
Nguyen Thanh Nhan, deputy head of the market monitoring bureau in Binh Duong Province, said, “Our biggest worry is about the overlapping and contradictory legal documents, which make it impossible to deal with certain cases.”
Lawyer Quang said the legal system against counterfeiting acts in Vietnam is relatively complete, with up to 5-6 different agencies assigned to the job. Laws and regulations are sufficient but their enforcement is problematic.
Related agencies do not coordinate with each other in inspection and management. “Only 22 cases of intellectual property violations detected in five years do not reflect the reality,” Quang said.
vietnamnet
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