Answer:

There is no simple answer to this question. I will only talk about forgery and imitation in my answer, though many other actions may be regarded as “illegal trade practices”. Brands have been copied ever since they exist. Fighting the abuse of trade marks is not only the interest of the owners of trade marks, but also the interest of the whole economy of the nation. Whole industries may collapse and tax revenues disappear as a result of large scale illegal trade. According to OECD and EU surveys, 10-12 per cent of world trade is illegal. In addition to macro-economic considerations, the protection of consumers is equally important. Today, not only luxury brands are copied, but everyday products as well. The damage to various branches of business in Hungary is diverse. If all direct and indirect damages are taken into consideration, the total sum would probably amount to tens of billions. Illegal copies of products within the FMCG sector are most frequently seen in the tobacco, alcohol and cosmetics businesses. Apart from making direct forgeries, another illegal practice is the manufacturing of copy brands or look-alike products. These are products which resemble well known brands to a great extent, as very similar visual design features are used. Such feature for example, may be the shape, writing or colour of the label, typography of the brand or name, or the logo. Such resemblance can mislead consumers into believing that the look-alike product has identical value to the original. In our opinion, three things are needed for fighting illegal trade effectively: good laws, effective implementation, and a certain consciousness by both consumers and retailers/manufacturers. We try to influence all legislation related to the protection of trade marks and copyright. One of our greatest successes was the lobbying we did in order to extend the competence of VPOP to investigate cases where provisions of the Criminal Code related to copyright might be applied. We have also lobbied to make criminal investigations and sanctions in this field more effective. When industries threatened by illegal trade and the authorities work together, results are good. For example, the market of illegal cigarettes has been halved in recent years. Such successes have lead us to support VPOP in official form, which includes the continuous exchange of information. We also believe, that retailers should focus on quality and reliability in their campaigns.