21 | 03 | 2019

EUIPO and OECD Published the Study on Trends in Trade in Counterfeit and Pirated Goods

Photo: Unsplash.com/Leone Venter

The European Observatory on Infringements of Intellectual Property Rights at the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) published a study that presents an updated quantitative analysis of the value, scope and magnitude of world trade in counterfeit and pirated products. The study was prepared and published in cooperation between the EUIPO and the OECD originally titled Trends in Trade in Counterfeit and Pirated Goods.

This study is based on data for 2016 and it presents an update in relation to the study that processed data for 2013, using the same methodology.

The results show that, between 2013 and 2016, the share of trade in counterfeit and pirated goods in global trade grew very significantly, which indicates this problem to have become very serious. In 2016, counterfeit and pirated goods amounted to as much as 3.3 of world trade (or USD 509 billion), whereas in 2013, such goods made up to 2.5% of world trade (or USD 461 billion).

This study also performs an in-depth assessment of the situation in the European Union, and the results show that in 2016, imports of counterfeit and pirated products into the EU amounted to as much as EUR 121 billion (or USD 134 billion), which represents up to 6.8% of EU imports (against 5% of EU imports in 2013).

The conclusion of the study implies that counterfeiting and piracy represent a critical risk for all innovative companies that rely on intellectual property to support their business strategies, no matter where they are located.

Annex B at the end of the study provides additional tables including data for the Republic of Croatia as well.

The entire study is available through the following link, and a summary of the study in Croatian is available at the same link.