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IP Newsletter | Fall 2017
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TRADEMARK & DESIGN
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Working with Korean Customs: A Vital and Effective Way to Combat Counterfeiters
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One of the first lines of defense in preventing the spread of counterfeit and imitation goods is to stop such goods from entering a country at the borders. Accordingly, intellectual property rights owners should always consider using Customs' services as a part of their enforcement programs in Korea.
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According to a recent report by the Korea Customs Service ("KCS") (the report can be viewed on the KCS' official website at www.customs.go.kr in both Korean and English), there were a total of 9,853 different seizure cases involving counterfeit goods in 2016. From these seizures, 9,422 cases involved the infringement of trademark rights. There were also 181 cases of copyright infringement and 250 cases involving patent infringement or infringement of other rights.
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From the imported counterfeit goods declared to Customs, if evaluated based on weight criteria, the majority of goods (74.6%) were those sent as general import cargo and express cargo. However, if evaluated based on the number of consignments, the majority of cases (97%) were counterfeit goods sent via air post (5,900 cases) and special courier deliveries (3,646 cases).
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In terms of the types of counterfeit goods seized in 2016, the most popular items included toys (24.8%), clothing and textiles (14.5%), and handbags (11.9%). The items which had the sharpest increase from the previous year were athletic goods (increase of 266%), clothing accessories such as belts, etc. (increase of 243%), and home appliances (increase of 239%).
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Mainland China continued to be the origin of most of the counterfeits seized (8,607 cases or 87.4% of total seizures), while Hong Kong came in second (957 cases or 9.7% of total seizures).
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The number of seizure cases in 2016 was considerable, and reflect how active Customs is in detaining suspicious goods at the border. In this regard, Customs' efforts not only discourage importers of counterfeit goods, but also make a positive impact in reducing the quantities of counterfeits circulating in the market.
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Meanwhile, as a result of the popularity of proxy purchasing agents and direct imports in Korea, more and more counterfeit goods are entering into Korea via air post or overseas courier services in small quantities. Accordingly, Customs has been actively seizing such goods as well, which is a trend likely to be of great interest to intellectual property rights owners.
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In view of the continuing problem of counterfeit goods in Korea, intellectual property rights owners will find that actively assisting Customs in seizure cases, as well as conducting training sessions for Customs officers to educate them about their brands, is a vital and efficient way to fight the counterfeit problem.
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Back to Main Page
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If you have any questions regarding this article, please contact:
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For more information, please visit our website: www.ip.kimchang.com
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