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Joint Strategic Plan on Intellectual Property Enforcement SECTION 4 throughout the company; and best-practice sharing across industries to foster open, collaborative industry dialogue and a corporate culture of transparency. Domestic and international think-tanks and academic institutions, particularly business and public-policy schools, have a role to play in uncovering innovative solutions to difficult international trade, public diplomacy, and entrepreneurial challenges. 59 Increasing scientific research, data collection, and analysis will enhance our understanding of the scope and impact of various IPR enforcement challenges and the most effective means to address them. Among many other worthy areas of focus, the following illustrative, non-exhaustive list is submitted for purposes of public research and consideration. Through enhanced research, we can ensure that public policy in the years ahead will continue to improve and remain strategically aligned with evolving threats. Additional Research on Illicit Trade in Counterfeit Goods is Needed… • To assess the magnitude of counterfeit goods in the domestic and global supply chains. The OECD and others have made valuable contributions to our understanding of the scope and scale of counterfeit trade. Additional research will continue to advance our understanding of the magnitude and dimensions of the issue. Additionally, much of the current research is limited to cross-border trade of tangible goods, and excludes significant categories of domestically produced and consumed counterfeit goods and digital piracy. • To measure impacts to the U.S. economy, competitiveness, and strategic markets. Research is needed on the impact of counterfeit trade to the economy and jobs market, including: negative effects on U.S. industry such as lost sales, lost brand value, added costs of doing business, and reduced ability to sustain highest levels of innovation; negative effects on U.S. government such as lost tax revenue, IP enforcement expenses (i.e., interdiction, seizure, investigation, prosecution, and incarceration), storage and disposal costs for counterfeit goods, and economic and social risks of counterfeits entering critical private or public supply chains. • To measure the nexus between transnational organized crime (TOC) and illicit trade. A more analytical understanding of the scope and scale of TOC and the methods by which illicit trade is used to generate revenue for entities involved in TOC would be of benefit to the development of policy. • To understand the nature of illicit manufacturing operations. Research into the structure and composition of facilities engaged in the manufacture of counterfeit goods would enable policymakers to target legislative and regulatory efforts most effectively. For example, what entities are driving increases in illicit trade: (1) rogue and unlicensed/ unregulated factories engaged in counterfeit trade; (2) licensed factories, operating openly, but engaged in unlawful side-businesses/activities; or (3) authorized factories, with a present relationship with rights holder(s), engaged in impermissible “second shift” production? • To assess the scope of exploitation of transit points and Free Trade Zones (FTZs). Additional research and quantitative analysis are needed to evaluate the extent to which transit points and FTZs are exploited by illicit traders; the manner in which they are exploited; and the extent to which particular factors influence the relative exploitation of such points and zones. In addition to scope and tactics employed by illicit traders, what is the nature of cooperation between national customs authorities and the special authorities of their FTZs in connection with the targeting of traffickers in counterfeit goods? • To emphasize the role of the private sector in helping to minimize the criminal exploitation of commercial platforms and services. This Strategic Plan acknowledges the hazard faced by banks, online marketplaces, online advertisers, social networks and others whose platforms can be vulnerable to exploitation by illicit traders or pirates. More highquality research is needed into approaches responsive to this threat, as well as opportunities for additional voluntary industry initiatives and public-private partnerships for securing these essential platforms against illicit activities. 144
Office of the Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator • To identify the extent of risk to public health and safety. Significant public health and safety concerns have been identified in connection with the production, sale, and distribution of counterfeit goods; however, there has not been a comprehensive assessment of the scope and nature of these threats to the individual. • To identify environmental consequences of illicit trade. Research is urgently needed to evaluate the extent to which the manufacture, use, and disposal of illicit goods (from fertilizers, pesticides to other products containing heavy metals, for example) contributes to the degradation of the natural environment. • To identify the nexus between counterfeit trade and exploitative labor practices. Violations of fundamental human rights have been documented in connection with the manufacture of counterfeit goods, including the use of child labor, forced labor (including human trafficking for the purpose of forced labor), and sweatshop working conditions. Additional research is required to understand the labor force associated with counterfeit trade, at the point of manufacture and distribution/sale. With a fuller understanding of the scope of the problem, better tailored policy solutions may be applied. Researchers might choose to focus on: (1) what preventive measures might be implemented to protect the most vulnerable people; and (2) how labor exploiters recruit victims and what should be done to stop their iniquitous practices. • To assess the impact of voluntary initiatives. This Strategic Plan, like its predecessors, recommends that certain challenges be addressed through enhanced corporate leadership and voluntary industry initiatives. However, there is modest research available to policymakers evaluating the impact of voluntary initiatives in curbing IP abuses, or whether particular voluntary initiative strategies have demonstrated greater effectiveness than others. • To assess trends and analytics behind counterfeit trade via “small parcels.” What are the preferred platforms and channels used to advertise, sell, and distribute (ship) individual or small shipments of counterfeit goods via postal or express mail services? To what extent are individual sellers of counterfeit goods, distributed via individual small parcels, part of, or working with, larger transnational organized counterfeiting networks? What are frameworks to effectively respond to the growth in millions of micro-counterfeit sales transactions that travel via air shipments? • To assess trends on consumer knowledge and attitude in transactions involving counterfeit goods. As a result of technological advances in materials and manufacturing practices, the infiltration of counterfeit goods in online portals, and the growing diversity of fake products (e.g., counterfeit auto parts, medicines, personal care products, electronics, food and beverage, etc.), what is the volume of counterfeit transactions—by product category or sales technique— that rely on an element of consumer deception or fraud (e.g., an unwitting purchase)? • To assess common characteristics of illicit traders. For example, what is the trading history of importers of seized containers of counterfeit goods? Are they new entrants in trade? How long were companies in existence? Was a misappropriation of another importer’s (trusted) identity involved? What transport lines are preferred by illicit source, product category, etc.? • To use “big data” in order to better understand, and minimize, illicit trade in counterfeit goods. How to increase transparency and better insight into e-commerce and other digital transactions in order to understand the characteristics of the illicit trader, including for purposes of enhanced risk-targeting and predictive analytics? What techniques could be employed to enhance the usefulness of customs, enforcement or private sector data? • To understand crime syndicates’ exploitation of the global financial system to support counterfeit trade, including by way of trade-based money laundering. What is the global scope of trade-based money laundering involving counterfeit goods? • To assess how rogue actors may exploit social media and similar channels in support of illicit counterfeit trade. For example, to what extent do illicit actors use social media tools to generate web traffic; divert consumers to e-commerce websites where they sell their goods; utilize in-site “buy buttons” facilitating purchases directly from page SECTION 4 145
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U.S. JOINT STRATEGIC PLAN ON INTELL
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PREAMBLE A Reflection on Creativity
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1 THE GLOBAL SCALE OF INTELLECTUAL
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