Global trade in counterfeit goods continues to grow in scope and magnitude, with multiple impacts on consumers, rights holders and governments. For consumers, counterfeiting poses dangers for health and safety. It also lowers consumer satisfaction when low-quality fake goods are unwittingly purchased. For intellectual property rights holders, counterfeiting means lost sales as well as brand erosion. For governments, counterfeiting leads to lower tax revenues and higher unemployment, as well as greater expenses in reacting to public safety threats and dealing with anti-counterfeiting legislation.
This report illustrates how trade in counterfeit and pirated goods affects the Swiss economy. It looks at the problem from two perspectives. First, it studies the magnitude and impacts of global trade in counterfeit Swiss goods1. Second, it explores the impact on four Swiss industries: watchmaking; the mechanical, electrical engineering and metalworking industry; the fast-moving consumer goods industry (FMCG); and the pharmaceutical industry. The analysis identifies specific product categories targeted, the main economies of origin of counterfeit goods, and the main trade routes and transit points used. The analysis also assesses the losses due to counterfeiting, in terms of forgone sales and lower profits by Swiss innovative companies, taxes forgone by the Swiss government and jobs lost in Switzerland.
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected trade in fake goods that infringe Swiss companies' IP rights. In most cases, the crisis has aggravated the existing trends, but in terms of absolute volumes, the impact seems to be rather moderate. The key trend has been the very intense abuse of the online environment, as, under confinement, consumers turn to online markets to fulfil their needs. This resulted in a massive growth in the online supply of all sorts of counterfeits, including those infringing Swiss IP. This sharp increase in fakes concerned not only medicines and personal protective equipment (PPE), but also many other goods, including watches, fast moving consumer goods, and products of the mechanical, electrical engineering and metalworking industry.