Why the $600 Bil Counterfeit Industry Is Still Horrible for Fashion
From Urban Outfitters copying the designs of independent artists to Zara passing off runway looks as its own to the counterfeit handbags for sale on the streets of New York and Los Angeles, authenticity in the fashion industry is questionable at best. There’s a lot to consider here: Why can American shoppers buy fake luxury items without facing penalty? If the counterfeit industry is an unregulated black market, why aren’t more consumers aware of where that money actually goes? Why are fast fashion brands allowed to steal concepts from big-name designers? Why is there no intellectual property protection for fashion, the way there is for art, film, and literature?
http://racked.com/archives/2014/12/01/counterfeit-fashion-goods-products-museum-exhibit.php
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Officials seize 292 domain names to protect consumers during holiday season
The holiday season is rife with online rip-offs. In a move to protect consumers, law enforcement officials have seized 292 domain names for sites that allegedly were selling counterfeit goods.
The sites were being used to illegally sell counterfeit merchandise including luxury goods, sportswear, electronics, pharmaceuticals and pirated goods like movies and music, Europol said Monday.
The European Union’s law enforcement agency coordinated the seizure with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and 25 law enforcement agencies from 19 countries.
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Europol seizes 292 websites in counterfeit goods crackdown on Cyber Monday
An international operation led by Europol has seized the domain names of 292 websites that were selling counterfeit or pirated products.
The seizures are part of Europol’s In Our Sites project and involved 25 law enforcement agencies from 19 countries, including the UK, Spain, France and Denmark, with the assistance of the US Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Europol said that the action followed leads received in August from trademark holders about the infringing websites. The seized domain names now remain in the possession of the governments involved in the operations. The most popular domains proved to be websites selling counterfeit luxury goods, sportswear, electronics and pharmaceuticals, along with pirated music and films.
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Durham MPP Granville Anderson says Ontario will focus on smuggled smokes to raise revenues
The Province plans to crack down on contraband tobacco in its efforts to overcome a revenue shortfall and erase its $12.5-billion deficit. In his fall economic statement, released on Nov. 17, Ontario finance minister Charles Sousa acknowledged the Province has collected $509 million less in tax revenue than expected, but still plans on balancing its books by 2018.
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ICE warns of holiday scams, counterfeit goods
With holiday shopping in full swing, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement authorities are asking the public to be aware of counterfeit goods on the market.
Customs officials spread a collection of fake bags, purses, Lamisil, Viagra, coupons, UGG boots, clothing, electronics and a $15,000 Hermès bag across a large table at ICE’s Long Beach office Friday morning. Another table contained counterfeit goods alongside their legitimate counterparts.
http://www.presstelegram.com/general-news/20141128/ice-warns-of-holiday-scams-counterfeit-goods
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Sri Lanka-born ISI Spy Gets 5-yr Term in Counterfeit Case
Sri Lankan national and suspected ISI agent, Zahir Hussain, whose arrest in April had led to the unearthing of a Pakistan spy network here, was convicted for five years by a special court here for smuggling counterfeit currency. Special judge M Moni pronounced the verdict, a day after Hussain pleaded guilty in the court, confessing that he had entered India at the behest of two Pakistani embassy officials based in Colombo.
Hussain had surprised all on Thursday when he confessed in the court that he had acted at the behest of the Pakistani officials and smuggled counterfeit currency with a face value `2.53 lakh.
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Varginia officials considering tightening tobacco regulation
Virginia officials are considering tightening regulation of tobacco retailers as a new approach to combatting illegal cigarette trafficking.The Virginia State Crime Commission staff has recommended requiring stores to obtain a state license to sell cigarettes and turning enforcement over to the agency that oversees the state’s liquor monopoly. A staff report says the Alcoholic Beverage Control Department already has extensive experience licensing stores that sell beer and wine, as well as enforcing state liquor laws.
Lear MoreHealth Ministry stresses raising tobacco taxes
Ministry of National Health Services, Regulation and Coordination Joint Secretary Dr Amir Sheikh on Wednesday stressed the need to review the existing tobacco tax structure in Pakistan and to develop an action plan to increase taxes on tobacco products in line with the recommendations of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).
He expressed these views during a meeting of the technical working group on tobacco taxation. Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Additional Commissioner Badruddin Ahmad Qureshi, Secretary Muhammad Zaheer Qureshi, Tobacco Control Cell Director Muhammad WaqasTarar, The Union Technical Officer Dr Fouad Aslam, World Bank Senior Health Specialist Dr InamulHaq, World Health Organisation Representative Shahzad Alam, Tobacco Control Cell Technical Coordinator Dr Ziauddin Islam and Project Coordinator Muhammad Javed attended the meeting.
Lear MoreMore levies may keep youth away from cigarettes
The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) will be launching electronic monitoring system in early months of next year for monitoring production of cigarettes. A meeting of the technical working group on tobacco taxation was held under the chairmanship of Dr Amir Sheikh, joint secretary (admin), ministry of national health services, regulations & coordination.
Muhammad Zaheer Qureshi, secretary FBR, told the participants that FBR will be launching electronic monitoring system in early months of next year for monitoring production of cigarettes. He said that by implementing two-tier system, there would be maximum increase in tobacco tax revenues up to Rs 12.5 billion annually.
http://nation.com.pk/islamabad/27-Nov-2014/more-levies-may-keep-youth-away-from-cigarettes
Lear MoreCigarettes smuggling reaches lower level this year in September
The black market for cigarettes in Romania went slightly down to 15.4% in September, compared to 17% in July, according to the recent data provided by research company Novel. This is the lowest level registered this year, but it’s higher however than the 13% annual average registered in 2012 and 2013. “The West region is the most affected by illegal trade of cigarettes in September, the black market registering a fulminant increase in this area – by 16 percentage points, to 42.1%,” said Marian Marcu, manager of Novel Research.
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