Against Textile Counterfeiting
Disastrous Impact of Counterfeiting on EU Textile & Clothing
A new report of the OHMI (Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market) on the economic cost of IPR infringement in the clothing, footwear and accessory sector reveals that annually the industry loses more than €26 billion of revenue which leads to approximately 500.000 jobs lost. For many years now, the textile and clothing industry represented by EURATEX
the European Apparel and Textile Confederation, alerts the EU institutions and the national authorities about the disastrous consequences of counterfeiting and piracy for our industry and for the whole European economy.
The report of the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (OHMI) demonstrates that the costs of IPR infringement borne by the European economy in terms of job losses, loss of profit and even, in some cases, closures of SMEs are very high.
To overcome the challenges facing the textiles and clothing industry, EURATEX urges the EU to take concrete actions as regards the three essential aspects of the fight against counterfeiting and piracy. The first is to combat the phenomenon within the boundaries of the EU; secondly, appropriate steps need to be taken to ensure that imported counterfeit textiles and clothing are intercepted and perpetrators are brought to justice. And the last, exporters of European products to third countries need assurances that their designs will enjoy all necessary protection on the markets of those countries as required by the WTO TRIPs agreement (Article 25.2).
