USTR Highlights Gains in Philippine IP Enforcement

The United States Trade Representative (USTR) spotlighted the Philippines’ progress in intellectual property (IP) enforcement, including efforts to improve Greenhills Shopping Center’s reputation as a counterfeit hub.

In its 2024 Review of Notorious Markets for Counterfeiting and Piracy, the USTR commended the National Committee on Intellectual Property Rights (NCIPR), where the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) serves as vice chair, for a record-breaking seizure of counterfeit goods.

From January to September 2024, the NCIPR seized counterfeit items valued at $617.8 million (about PHP 34.6 billion) from ports of entry, physical markets, and warehouses. This surpassed the PHP 26.4 billion ($471.4 million) worth of goods confiscated in 2023. The USTR recognized this as a significant milestone indicating improved enforcement and coordination with stakeholders.

“This development reflects IPOPHL’s dedication to curbing counterfeiting and our increased collaboration with rights holders to ensure action,” IPOPHL Officer-in-Charge Nathaniel S. Arevalo said.

The Notorious Markets List, part of the report, identified 38 online and 33 physical markets globally that facilitate trademark counterfeiting or copyright piracy.

For the Philippines, Greenhills Shopping Center remained the only physical market cited for counterfeit goods. The USTR noted the mall’s continued reputation as a hub for counterfeit products but acknowledged ongoing collaborative efforts to address the issue.

The report highlighted raids conducted by law enforcement and rights holders, Greenhills’ policy shift toward cracking down on counterfeit sellers, and the NCIPR’s comprehensive strategy to transform the mall into a high-end shopping destination with legitimate vendors.

“Rights holders have welcomed the opportunity to collaborate with government authorities and the Greenhills Shopping Center management to remove counterfeit sellers,” the report stated.

Online platforms also faced scrutiny. Shopee, a platform operating across Southeast Asia and Latin America, was identified for persistent counterfeit issues. However, the USTR acknowledged Shopee’s recent actions to mitigate these problems.

Arevalo noted that Shopee, as a signatory of the E-Commerce Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) facilitated by IPOPHL, has been “cooperative” in addressing brand infringement concerns raised by MOU signatories.

While commending these advances, Arevalo reaffirmed the NCIPR’s commitment to intensifying enforcement efforts against counterfeiting and piracy.

“We will continue to study and monitor trends used in violating intellectual property rights, with the end goal of advancing economic development through innovation and creativity,” he said. (Janina Lim, Information Officer III)