Counterfeit goods

Counterfeit goods are found in many markets, including the United States. Luxury brand-name articles are often counterfeited (Pierre Cardin, Louis Vuitton), but the phenomenon is by no means limited to them. Counterfeit auto and airplane parts, pharmaceuticals, and Levi jeans along with computer software, musical CDs and tapes, and even Apple and IBM computers exist. In China, a haven for counterfeiting, entirely counterfeit Jeeps have been produced. Counterfeit goods are unlicensed and generally ride freely on the BRANDS identity and GOODWILL of TRADEMARK owners. Their quality, while often suspect, can be surprisingly good. Legal remedies against counterfeiting include customs seizures (the big problem being notice and identification of counterfeits), court orders, and DAMAGES. Members of the WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION are required to provide such remedies, but their level of enforcement in developing countries varies substantially. Vested local interests (for example, the Chinese military) may block use of such remedies. The long-term solution is the emergence of local technology and brand-name supporters of INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY rights, as has occurred in Japan, Korea, and Singapore. When this occurs, counterfeiting as a cheap means of ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT tends to move on to less-advanced nations.