Beijing Continues Counterfeit Crackdown in "Notorious" Market

Beijing's industry and commerce authority on December 23 said it would continue its crackdown on counterfeit goods in a market labeled by Washington as "notorious" for intellectual property rights (IPR) infringement.

The Silk Street Market, known in the past as a downtown Beijing hotspot for knock-off designer goods, is among the physical markets listed by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) for the rampant dealing of counterfeit goods this year.

The problem of piracy "exists in the Silk Street Market, but the cases have been remarkably reduced after a five-year crackdown on IPR violations," said Yuan Jianwei, an official with the Beijing industry and commerce bureau.

Since 2006, the government's piracy watchdog has investigated 106 cases of IPR violations reported in Silk Street Market, and has fined vendors a total of 1.2 million yuan (190,476 U.S. dollars), officials said.

Yuan said that since the government crackdown there has been almost no "open selling" of counterfeit goods from 48 key foreign brands listed by Beijing's industry and commerce authorities which include Prada, Burberry, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, and Fendi.

Beijing officials said the problem of piracy has been brought under control after the Silk Street Market was thoroughly overhauled in 2005. But some vendors, driven by profits, resorted to selling knock-off designer goods to meet demand largely fueled by foreign customers, they said.

Source: Xinhua