The Economics of Counterfeit Trade

Walk down any main street in Shanghai, Paris or New York and you will see evidence of the counterfeit goods trade. Everyone has seen or heard of fake Prada bags or Omega watches. But how large is the counterfeit market? It appears that the same numbers have been quoted repeatedly in sources ranging from serious academic journals to the BBC to the Sydney Morning Herald. This is the first book to fully examine the size of the counterfeit market.

Many authors have proposed actions to combat counterfeiting. Chaudhry and Zimmerman are the first to take a global look at the intellectual property environment using a research-based approach. This book also gives international business managers practical, tested tools they can use to combat piracy. These recommendations are based on the successful experience of managers wrestling with these problems every day. The book is based on solid research but written in an accessible style.

Résumé
The expansion of world trade has brought with it an explosive growth in counterfeit merchandise. Estimates put the world total for counterfeit products at about one half trillion dollars annually, although it is impossible to accurately determine the true size of the counterfeit market. What is known is that this illicit trade has infected nearly every industry from pharmaceuticals to aircraft parts. Software and music piracy are easy targets widely reported in the media. In 2007, the Business Software Alliance (BSA) estimated that 38% of personal computer software installed worldwide was illegal and the losses to the software industry were $48 billion worldwide. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) reported a 58% increase in the seizures of counterfeit CDs. Overall, a wide range of industries agree that there is a severe problem with the protection of intellectual property rights (IPR) throughout the world, yet there have been virtually no attempts to describe all aspects of the problem. This work aims to give the most complete description of various characteristics of the IPR environment in a global context. We believe a holistic understanding of the problem must include consumer complicity to purchase counterfeit products, tactics of the counterfeiters (pirates) as well as actions (or inaction) by home and host governments, and the role of international organizations and industry alliances. This book establishes the full environmental aspects of piracy, describes successful anti-counterfeiting actions and then prescribes measures IPR owners should take to protect their intellectual property.

Contenu
The Global Growth of Counterfeit Trade.- The Supply of Counterfeit Trade: The Problem Countries.- Modeling the Intellectual Property Rights Environment.- The Demand for Counterfeit Trade: Consumer Complicity.- The Use of Anti-piracy Marketing Techniques to Educate the Consumer.- Changing Trade Policy: The EU and US Bolster Protection of Intellectual Property Rights.- Government and Industry Led Operations to Curb Counterfeit Trade.- The Special Case of China.- Internet Piracy: The Virtual Marketplace for Counterfeit Goods.- Managerial Counterattack: Traditional and Novel Anti-counterfeiting Strategies.- The Future: Will the Piracy Paradox Persist?.