The number of counterfeit goods (fake products) imported into the country through overseas direct purchase is rapidly increasing. In particular, the proportion of counterfeit goods from China in overseas direct purchases has been found to exceed 90% of the total.
On the 13th, the Korea Customs Service announced that it will publish and distribute the "2023 Intellectual Property Rights Infringement Enforcement Annual Statistical Report." The report analyzes the status of intellectual property rights infringement goods detected at customs clearance stages by year since 2015, categorized by types of intellectual property rights, customs clearance methods, item categories, and countries of dispatch.
According to the report published this year, the total number of intellectual property rights infringement goods detected by the Korea Customs Service last year reached 85,247 cases (over 1.34 million items). By type of intellectual property rights, 83,892 cases involved trademark rights, and 1,310 cases involved design rights and patent rights. Among these, goods infringing design rights and patent rights increased by 94.4% compared to the previous year.
When classified by customs clearance method, the number of detections in express consignment clearance, where overseas direct purchase goods are mainly imported, was 69,525 cases, accounting for 81.6% of the total.
In particular, the quantity of counterfeit goods detected in express consignment clearance was approximately 343,000 items, a 197.8% increase from the previous year, indicating a sharp rise in the import of counterfeit goods through overseas direct purchase.
The detected goods by item category were as follows: bags with 37,574 cases (44.1%), footwear with 17,847 cases (20.9%), clothing with 9,332 cases (10.9%), and home appliances with 4,986 cases (5.8%). Notably, home appliances increased significantly from 393 cases in 2021 to 1,777 cases in 2022, and continued to rise sharply last year.
Regarding the countries of dispatch for counterfeit goods, China (including Hong Kong) accounted for 82,822 cases, representing 97.2% of the total. This indicates that the vast majority of counterfeit goods entering the country originate from China. Following China were Vietnam with 1,552 cases (1.8%) and Thailand with 186 cases (0.2%).
The report has been produced in 700 Korean copies and 300 English copies and will be distributed to related government agencies such as the National Intellectual Property Committee and the Trade Commission, overseas diplomatic missions, overseas Intellectual Property Desks (IP-DESK), KOTRA, intellectual property rights holders, and related organizations. The report is also available on the Korea Customs Service website.
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