Counterfeits- The Truth of the matter

[RevDevil]

Death By China : Is a good film.
[video]http://youtube.com/watch?v=K7npvv62gyw[/video]

You may need a desktop Mac or PC to watch this. It's what I consider essential viewing in order to form a more balanced opinion on this topic. I was able to watch it up until yesterday, without logging in.

 

[Dustinhxc]

I cant tell others where to spend their money, though I will NEVER buy a knock off Knife. I want to have a RELIABLE steel and support the designers that make them! Good post.

 

[Rey HRH]

What muddies the waters is that so called "counterfeit" products are genuine products that have been diverted. In a good number of instances, a portion of the production or inventory is diverted from the legitimate distribution system. The end consumer gets the same product at a loss to the company who owns the product along with the legitimate distributors.

The video points out 90% of counterfeits come from one country. It's that same country that has effectively and sometimes brutally implemented policies. I think there's a discrepancy in the story that they are doing what they can to stop piracy. It's like the drug dealers working with police who allow some drugs to be intercepted for show and everyone comes away happy.

 

[Stoli89]

Great topic and one that isn't brought up often.

I would like to throw in my 2 cents on this and I am going to stay away from the intellectual property side. The individual who buys the fake/counterfeit of anything is just showing who he really is. There are those who have the honor to wait and spend the money on the real thing, then there are those who will buy and wear the fake and this indeed shows their character as that of a fake themselves. I would rather own a picture of the item than a fake.

The fake watch industry is probably the biggest culprit. There are even fake watch forums. How much Honor do you have when you support liars and cheats?

It's not always that simple when it comes to what drives the consumer to purchase a counterfeit. Sometimes they are ignorant of what differentiates genuine from fake and are essentially duped. Other times, they are intentional buyers actively seeking to find a counterfeit at an acceptable price/perceived quality.

The first example might actually cause a lost sale to the brand owner/manufacturer; the later not so much. However, in both cases the illicit product will hurt the brand over time and negatively impact the innovator/owner and the value chain surrounding that legitimate product.

IMO, the best way to fight illicit trade is to leverage new technologies that can connect the brand owner, the unique/discreet product and the consumer at the point of purchase (& beyond). This type of connection is impossible to effectively counterfeit. These scalable and cost effective systems have already been implemented by both the pharmaceutical and tobacco industries, in order to fight illicit trade.