Tag: illegal trade

Corruption and political crisis 'hold back' Brazil, says Davos Forum

Research carried out with 13 thousand entrepreneurs shows that 60% of them pointed out the “failure of governance” as the greatest risk for business in the country

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In the forum's assessment, “failure in governance undermines countries' competitiveness, job creation and economic development” (Reuters / VEJA)

The biggest obstacle to doing business in Brazil this year is the failure of the country's governance. The alert is from the World Economic Forum, which next Wednesday starts its annual event at the ski resort of Davos, Switzerland. In a report published on Thursday, about the biggest global risks for the year, the entity pointed to the Brazilian political crisis and corruption.

In a survey of 13.000 entrepreneurs, 60% of them indicated the “failure of governance” as the greatest risk for doing business in Brazil today. The rate outweighs those who consider the lack of water or infrastructure to be the biggest problems.

In the rest of the world, however, the issue of bankruptcy in public administration appears only as the fourth highest risk and is pointed out as a problem for only 27% of the 13.000 respondents. The biggest global risks, according to Davos, would be immigration and climate change in 2016.

Source: Veja.com (15/01)

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Illegal trade is the world's second largest economy

The value of illegal trade is 8% to 15% of the world economy, according to a recent study by Euromonitor consultancy signed by Philip Buchanan and Lourdes Chavarria.

The highest estimate is $ 12 trillion in 2014, the same size as China's GDP, the world's second largest economy.

In 2013, 2,3 billion pharmaceutical products and 470 million electronic products were confiscated around the world. In the US alone, more than $ 1,7 billion in counterfeiting was retained at the border in the same year.

Counterfeit bags in New York's Chinatown neighborhood: the original version costs up to 100 times more. Photo by Exam.com

Illegal trade is defined as the “production, import, export, sale and purchase of goods that do not follow the current legislation in any specific jurisdiction”.

They range from selling overdue medicines to counterfeiting famous brands or making alcoholic beverages at home.

 

Source: Exam (09/10)

 

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ABES launches Software Asset Management Manual

Like any other valuable resource within a company, software is an asset that needs effective management to avoid waste of investments or even future expenses. To guide IT Executives and other managers, the Brazilian Association of Software Companies (ABES) has just launched the ABES Software Asset Management Manual.

Available for free on the entity's website, the interactive manual shows how a company can maintain compliance with licensing policies, current legislation and also the most common mistakes made by companies.

Using a counterfeit copy of a computer program or improperly using an unauthorized license are some of the practices that configure software piracy.

Therefore, it is essential that companies make a control of the acquired assets to check if the licenses are being used correctly and not to suffer civil and legal penalties. This is because, software piracy and IT theft are crimes and the organization will be exposed to compensation, which can reach up to three thousand times the value of the counterfeit software program, and to prison sentences, which can last for four years.

“Our goal is to alert and help companies to implement a procedural methodology that follows the best practices in the market, helping companies to improve processes and make conscious investments”, comments Jorge Sukarie, president of ABES.

Source: ABES Portal
Collaboration: Microsoft

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Unpublished campaign warns of the dangers of smuggling

The cheapest is not always the best choice. Even more when the option is for smuggled, pirated or counterfeit products.

The Brazilian Association to Combat Counterfeiting (ABCF), in partnership with the Brazilian Institute of Ethics in Competition (ETCO), launched this Wednesday, July 23, the campaign "Promotion Achou, Perdeu!"

The campaign's proposal is to draw the attention of consumers and society to the risks that products from contraband bring to safety and health. The tone of the communication follows the line of the great sales of popular stores, but with a focus on unknown components and the dangers generated by pirated software, illegal cigarettes from Paraguay and toys without Inmetro certification.

“We want to involve society and encourage a change in consumer behavior, showing that often what appears to be an advantage, in fact, only brings problems and harms to health and increased crime in the state”, explains Rodolpho Ramazzini, director of the Association Brazilian Fight Against Counterfeiting (ABCF).

"As well as the health and safety risks were not enough, the increase in smuggling also significantly affects the state's revenue", concludes Ramazzini.

Research

Aimed at classes B and C, which are among the largest consumers of smuggled, pirated or counterfeit products, the campaign “Promotion Found, Lost!” was based on various statistics and research by Ibope, which helped to identify the points that hurt and sensitize the consumer the most.

Campaign reach

The campaign will run in the metropolitan region of Curitiba between the months of July and October and will be on several billboards, bus shelters, on TV channels, radio and newspapers.

After this period, the entities will analyze the results - such as the drop in the consumption of smuggled and counterfeit products - to evaluate the possibility of expanding the circulation to other states and cities affected by this problem.

Meeting in Salvador discusses the fight against piracy and illegal trade

City has more than 30 thousand street vendors in Salvador, but only 12 thousand licenses issued

Meeting held at the Chamber of Shopkeepers (CDL) in Salvador (BA) at the end of April presented an urban planning plan for the withdrawal of street vendors who operate irregularly in the city.

Estimates show that there are more than 30 thousand street vendors in Salvador, but only 12 thousand licenses issued.

The meeting had 32 participants, including the Executive Secretary of the National Council to Combat Piracy (CNCP), Rodolfo Tamanaha, and the Secretary of Public Order of Salvador, Rosemma Maluf, in addition to representatives of the Civil Police, Federal Highway Police, Salvador City Hall, Treasury Department, Public Ministry, Federal Revenue Service and Military Police.

The planning plan aims to remove street vendors from 14 mapped areas, such as Praça Rio Branco, Avenida 7 de Setembro and Largo do Rosário. In addition, there is a plan to standardize the tents on some public roads.

Currently, some street vendors have been directed to the Shopping Popular of Baixa do Sapateiro, in addition to another place that is being built near the Convent of São Bento.

During the meeting, the results of the operations of the Federal Highway Police in Bahia were presented, mainly with regard to seizures of counterfeit drugs, adulterated fuels and cigarettes. Despite the success in these apprehensions, during the meeting the need for more equipment was mentioned for the progress of the work.

 

Economic Competitiveness and Intellectual Property under debate

Entrepreneurs and specialists from different countries met in São Paulo, at the XXXII International Congress on Intellectual Property, promoted by the Brazilian Association of Intellectual Property (ABPI), to discuss “The role of Intellectual Property in Economic Competitiveness”.

 

 Heloisa Ribeiro, Executive Director of ETCO and Pamela Passman, President of CREATe.org

The theme of the congress this year highlighted the importance of companies adding value to their products in order to increase their market competitiveness. During the event, ABPI signed an agreement with the Ponto Br Information and Coordination Center (NI.BR) to create an Arbitration Chamber aimed at resolving disputes involving domain names on the Internet.

The president of ABPI, Luiz Henrique do Amaral, points out that “the challenge in Brazil is to establish a more advantageous environment to create and innovate than to copy. It is necessary to consolidate the strategic role of Intellectual Property to consolidate the Brazilian position in the international market. Instead of competing with China, Indonesia and Vietnam, we must compete in the market in this intermediate range between low-quality and low-priced products and top of the line products, where we have full capacity to compete ”.

Present at the event, ETCO's executive director, Heloisa Ribeiro, spoke of the importance of civil society participation in combating piracy. "Although the piracy rates are still quite significant, there is a change in people's awareness of the harmful effects of illegal trade and the entities are acting strongly in this regard". About ETCO, she explained that the topic of piracy is among the priorities of the Institute, which monitors actions in the legislative sphere and understands that it is necessary to maintain continuity and constancy in repressive and awareness actions.

ETCO also participated in the exhibition with a stand together with the American NGO CREATe.org, which brings together more than 100 multinational companies in discussions related to the challenges of protecting intellectual property and anti-corruption actions. The institution's president, Pamela Passman, was at the congress to speak on a panel about the challenges and opportunities of competitiveness.

Issues such as legal certainty for investment in innovation were also discussed; inventive step in the technology industry; practical effects of the General Cup Law; mediation and arbitrate in IP; unfair competition; piracy; Copyright; electronic content and biotechnology.

Among the speakers were judges Francisco Loureiro and Liliane Roriz; the Minister of the Superior Court of Justice Sidnei Beneti; the president of the National Association of Research and Development of Innovative Companies (Anpei), Carlos Eduardo Calmanovici; the president of the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI), Jorge Ávila; and the president of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (Aipla), William G. Barber.

Revenue discloses shares of the Frontier Armored operation in real time

Actions to combat smuggling, embezzlement, piracy and drug trafficking, especially in border regions, can now be monitored via the internet.

Since July 17, the IRS has created yet another tool to publicize the actions of the Armored Frontier operation. To know the new page, made available by RFB, just click on the link and follow the news about the operation that is part of the government's Strategic Borders Plan.

The Ministry of Justice's plan aims to strengthen public security actions in border regions. It allows the participation of the Union and States in the construction of uniform and integrated public security policies in border regions.

Senate approves national policy to combat piracy of medicines and cosmetics

Source: Agência Brasil - 13/06/2012

Marcos Chagas - Reporter for Agência Brasil

Today (13) the Senate overcame the first stage of creating a national policy to combat piracy of products submitted to Health Surveillance. The main focus is to integrate the various governmental actions to combat product piracy that must pass the screening of the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa). A bill in this sense, authored by Senator Humberto Costa (PT-PE), was approved on a terminative basis by the Social Affairs Commission (CAS). Now, the matter will be analyzed by the Chamber of Deputies.

According to a survey by the World Health Organization (WHO), cited by the Brazilian Institute for Competitive Ethics (Etco), in Latin America, Southeast Asia and Africa it is estimated that 30% of the products sold on the market and used by the population have fraudulent origin. Anvisa, in turn, estimates this percentage at 20% in Brazil.

The data were presented by the rapporteur Vanessa Grazziotin (PCdoB-AM). She recalled that WHO estimates the percentage of counterfeit or adulterated drugs sold in developing countries like Brazil, Turkey, Russia and India at 25%.

The rapporteur cited, for example, the piracy of cosmetics, which has peculiar characteristics. “Illegal production occurs within the country's borders, in backyard factories or in small laboratories”. She added that production is closer to the places of consumption, which makes it difficult to intercept products. The senator cited that the complaints recently made about the use of formaldehyde (formaldehyde) in hair creams have brought to light some of the reality of the manufacture and illegal use of cosmetics in Brazil.