INTA Co-Hosts Roundtable on Anticounterfeiting Issues in Indonesia

The production and sale of counterfeit goods is a global multibillion-dollar problem that has serious economic and health ramifications for governments, businesses, and consumers. Effective anticounterfeiting requires a joint effort from all relevant stakeholders, such as police officers, intellectual property (IP) offices, customers, IP rights holders, and other relevant authorities. This holds true around the world, including in Indonesia.

To address this issue, INTA, in collaboration with the Indonesian Corporate Counsel Association (ICCA) and K&K Advocates-intellectual property (Jakarta, Indonesia), held a virtual roundtable on “Anti-Counterfeiting in Indonesia—Lesson Learned,” on September 2. The event enabled rights holders to gain awareness of potential risks to their IP when engaging in business activities in Indonesia and thus allow them to design strategies to protect their IP.

The roundtable provided a comprehensive understanding and sharing of best practices regarding anticounterfeiting in Indonesia. It also addressed legal certainty and protection for IP holders as well as useful information for business actors and the public regarding counterfeiting issues which violate provisions of Indonesia’s Trademark Law.

Speakers identified a high rate of IP rights violations in Indonesia where the level of IP rights protection and enforcement could be improved further. Counterfeiters are becoming increasingly elusive and sophisticated. Rights holders must work with consumers, IP offices, customs, law enforcement, legislators, and intermediaries to tackle this problem and effectively enforce their trademarks.

The Director General of the Directorate General of Intellectual Property, Ministry of Law and Human Rights of the Republic of Indonesia, Freddy Harris, and K&K Advocates Managing Partner Justisiari Perdana Kusumah were among the speakers at the event. In providing background, Dr. Harris said that the Indonesian government has implemented the regulations against trademark infringement and counterfeiting of goods, which are regulated in Law No. 20 of 2016 on Trademarks and Geographical Indications (Trademark Law).

“The campaign on anticounterfeiting should be conducted together and supported by all stakeholders to prevent the impact of counterfeiting activities by unauthorized parties,” he said.

Dr. Kusumah agreed, noting that counterfeiting is a complex issue and cannot be solved only by the rights holders. Rather, he continued, combating counterfeiting requires a collective effort from all relevant stakeholders. Other panelists were ICCA Vice President Yanne Sukmadewi and Widyaretna Buenastuti, a lead advisor at the Indonesian Anti-Counterfeiting Society. In addition, INTA Chief Representative, Asia-Pacific, Seth Hays provided remarks, outlining the Association’s anticounterfeiting activity in Indonesia.

While the speakers emphasized that counterfeiters have large distribution networks that brand owners alone cannot stop, they suggested potential steps that brand owners and other stakeholders can take. Among the lessons learned, speakers said that brand owners must proactively conduct their own investigations and have a holistic approach of protecting their brands against counterfeits. They said anticounterfeiting work requires more public awareness campaigns to reach both consumers and policymakers about the importance of IP rights protection and enforcement. Training of officials and public outreach is also a critical component of strengthening IP rights regimes.

Nearly 200 members of INTA and ICCA as well as more than 20 media representatives participated in the roundtable. It received coverage in prominent media such as Indo Pos, Investor Daily, and Media Indonesia.

INTA’s Asia-Pacific Representative Office, based in Singapore, represents the Association’s members across the region. Working in collaboration with staff at INTA’s headquarters in New York City, the Asia-Pacific Representative Office leads the Association’s policy, membership, marketing, and communications initiatives throughout this region. To learn more about INTA’s activities in the Asia-Pacific, please contact INTA Chief Representative Officer Seth Hays.

Although every effort has been made to verify the accuracy of this article, readers are urged to check independently on matters of specific concern or interest.

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