Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-12-17-Speech-3-489"
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"en.20081217.27.3-489"2
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"Madam President, I do not have to remind the people who are gathered here, and who are participating in this debate, of the dangers of counterfeit goods. There are many cases where counterfeit products pose a danger to the health, or even the lives, of consumers, and it is not necessary to elaborate any further on this point. It is merely sufficient to point out that counterfeit products include not only copies of luxury goods and CDs, but also medicines, consumer goods for both children and adults, as well as car parts. They often pose a safety risk, and the losses they incur do not only affect SMEs.
People involved in counterfeiting activities are members of criminal gangs. Their activities are part of a highly profitable business, which we must try to combat. That is why we need joint action, not only in the field of customs and excise services, but also close, administrative cooperation between the Member States, which I think currently leaves something to be desired.
Only the actions of the European Commission, to prevent the smuggling of counterfeit cigarettes, provide a positive example of such cooperation. I would like our experiences in this field to be applied in the battle against other counterfeit products. The problem of counterfeiting falls within the remit of a number of the Commission’s Directorates-General. It would be a good idea to establish a single Directorate-General which would be responsible for these matters and to define its competences.
Parliament is currently in possession of a written declaration on what are known as ‘look-alike products’, to which I have also contributed. A large number of original products are copied by look-alike products. It is often not clear under what legislation those who produce look-alike products might be pursued, whether this falls under unfair competition or intellectual property legislation. Furthermore, consumers who purchase look-alike products are often under the mistaken impression that they are branded goods. It is difficult to define the scale of the problem on the European market.
That is why I would like to ask the Commission whether it intends to respond to our request and conduct research into the influx and status of look-alike products on the internal market."@en1
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