Caterpillar cites DOJ’s anti-piracy campaign

US-based Caterpillar, Inc. recently commended the Department of Justice (DOJ) for "sending positive signals to the international business community that the Philippines is serious with its campaign against product and brand counterfeiting," saying the move "will go a long way in helping restore investor confidence in the country."

The DOJ recently filed 29 cases of violations against provisions of the Intellectual Property Code pertaining to unfair competition of internationally-famous trademarks against local businessman Manolo Samson. The cases stemmed from complaints by the US firm that Samson had allegedly copied its product and brand designs and is selling these items in the local market.

Caterpillar also warned local buyers that its authentic licensed product line consisting of heavy-duty shoes, clothes and leather goods are not sold in the Philippines, except in select duty-free shops.

The cases were filed by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) following a series of raids on several mall outlets and warehouses in Metro Manila. More raids against outlets selling suspected counterfeit Caterpillar and CAT-branded products were also conducted by the Philippine National Police National Capital Region Office.

Caterpillar cited the move by Justice Secretary Hernando Perez and Chief State Prosecutor Jovencito Zuño to junk an appeal filed by Samson before the DOJ. The US firm said Perez and Zuño’s decision to pursue the cases "is a vital sign that the Philippine government respects international covenants on intellectual property rights (IPR)."

The Philippines is currently among some 15 countries in the priority watchlist of notorious IPR violators. While inclusion in the list entails no trade sanction, it requires the United States Trade Representative to closely monitor the country’s compliance with international IPR laws.

Leading IPR lawyer Gilbert Reyes of the Poblador, Bautista and Reyes Law Offices earlier said many international investors "have become wary about introducing their products in the country or setting up production in the Philippines." This is because of the high risk that their products and brands will be illegally copied and sold in the local market.

"In many instances, the Philippines is bypassed altogether because the local market is already flooded with counterfeits even prior to the actual introduction of these products by the international investors to the local market," Reyes said.

"International investors cannot compete with local counterfeiters who ride on the multimillion dollar investment of these companies in building their brands," Reyes pointed out.

Reyes added that Perez’s campaign "also protects consumers." NBI reports, he said, showed that alleged counterfeit Caterpillar products are being sold at prices "close to if not the same as that of authentic licensed products."

He lamented that sellers of these products do not warn their buyers that the latter are not buying what they think are original Caterpillar products.

Other international investors who have reportedly been victimized by local product and brand counterfeit are textbook publishers and manufacturers of clothes with designer labels.