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Worldwide, intellectual property theft costs legitimate businesses more than $600 billion per year, according to figures from the World Customs Organization and Interpol. In the U.S. alone, the Department of Commerce estimates an annual loss of $250 billion in business revenue, along with 750,000 American jobs.
Counterfeiting and piracy drain business and the global economy, leading to widespread loss of lawful employment and massive shortfall of tax revenues. The creative community is robbed of reward for effort and innovation. The incentive to invest is reduced. Unsafe counterfeit products are increasingly harming consumers. All signals also point to linkages with organized crime.
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In response to this threat, USCIB has partnered with the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and companies around the world to launch BASCAP – Business Action to Stop Counterfeiting and Piracy. BASCAP seeks to connect all business sectors and cut across national borders in the fight against counterfeiting and piracy. Key in the effort is enlisting business from all regions and all affected countries, raising awareness and working with governments, law enforcement and international organizations in a joint effort to combat global intellectual property theft.
Global business presents a united front at a 2005 BASCAP leaders group meeting in London. Pictured: (back row, L-R) Jean-Philippe Courtois (Microsoft, USA), Peter Brabeck-Lethmathe (Nestlé, Switzerland), Sudhir Jalan (SICPA, India), Steve Ballmer (Microsoft, USA); Andrew Conway Molusi
(Johnnic Communications, South Africa); (front row, L-R) Pierre Dufour
(Air Liquide, France), Guy Sebban, (ICC), Eric Nicoli (EMI Group, U.K.), Jean-Rene Fourtou (Vivendi Universal, France), Yong-Sung Park (Doosan Group, Korea), Tariq Rangoonwala (Home Products International, Pakistan), Andrew Witty (GlaxoSmithKline, U.K.), Bob Wright (NBC Universal, USA), and David Iakobachvili
(Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods, Russia).
Numerous corporate leaders from around the world have signed on to BASCAP’s global leadership group, while they and many others are contributing their time and resources to a coordinated fight against the proliferation of fake products.
Through BASCAP’s comprehensive website, companies, organizations and individuals can take advantage of numerous tools developed to assist rights-holders in protecting their brands and combating global intellectual property theft. These includes:
· Seizure and intelligence reports, searchable by country and sector
· Resources for furthering brand protection around the globe
· Searchable database referencing relevant legislation for each market
· Workshops and educational materials
· Current news, studies, and ongoing activities in the fight against piracy and counterfeiting.
For more information and to get involved, visit the BASCAP website (www.iccwbo.org/bascap) or contact Charlene Flick, USCIB’s Director of Intellectual Property and Competition Policy (212-703-5094, cflick@uscib.org).
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