The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) revealed that reports of counterfeit and piracy increased by almost four times in the first half of the year.
Data from IPOPHL’s Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement Office (IEO) showed a surge to 200 reports from January to June, a significant rise from the 52 reports received in the same time period in 2017.
Piracy concerns accounted for 76% of the total reports, with 152 cases reported, up from just nine in the previous year.
IPOPHL’s deputy director general Ann Claire Cabochan found the increase in piracy reports intriguing and noted that 89% of all reports were submitted by a single netizen.
The reports indicated that this individual was taking a firm stance against pirated gaming software, suggesting a passion for gaming.
Software-related piracy constituted 95% of the reported cases, followed by one report each for books and e-books, and six reports for shows and movies.
On the other hand, counterfeiting reports increased by 9% year-on-year to 48, primarily driven by apparel (35), perfume and beauty products (nine), and other accessories (two).
About 91% of the cumulative piracy and counterfeiting reports during the period involved infringing activities online, according to IPOPHL.
The agency identified key channels used by infringers, with around 69% of cases attributed to Lazada, 20% to Facebook, 7% to Shopee, 2% to a collective of non-mainstream websites, and 1% to Instagram.
