A report showed that a third of domestic companies have had their trademarks pirated or had their patent rights infringed.
The Korea Trade Commission (KTC) under the Ministry of Knowledge Economy (MKE) researched companies which hold more than fifteen industrial rights including patent rights, patents on new devices, patents on new designs, and trademark rights for the last three years. The KTC reported on the 12th that 294 companies out of 1049 companies researched have had damages from the intellectual property rights. This means 28 percent of companies have suffered from infringement of copyrights.
The average number of infringement cases is 5.7 per a firm, for a total of 1665.
There are 670 trademark infringement cases, 433 cases of design rights infringement, and 335 cases of patent rights infringements. Large conglomerates have been more damaged by trademark infringements, while smaller firms most often suffered from design rights infringements.
By industry, 57.6 percent the highest rate - of textile, sewing, and footwear manufacturers - have undergone an average of 7.1 infringements. On a per company level, 10.2 average infringements per company have occurred in foodstuffs and the medical fields.
Seventy-five percent of the companies said that the government should strengthen the protection of intellectual property rights. Even though copyright infringement is diffused throughout the nation, only 54 percent of companies run a special organization for coping with infringement. Moreover, each company has only two specialists in the organization.
An official from KTC pointed out: “Some imitations have almost same qualities as the originals, even leading to price competitiveness. If the government doesn’t regulate those goods, it can deteriorate companies’ operating profits and discourage companies from creating new products. Companies try to take legal steps when the violation of intellectual property occurs, but they rarely ask the government to control or inquire.”
Therefore KTC planned to establish a report center for unfair activities in those fields which have been damaged by infringements, cooperate with company organizations, and strengthen commission research.
Especially, the government plans to oversee online shopping malls, close down shopping malls where many imitation products are sold, and prosecute the malls.
