THE Greenhills Shopping Center in San Juan, Metro Manila, has been kept by the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) in its notorious markets list (NML) following a review of a 2024 report.
A popular commercial hub, Greenhills is known for offering a wide range of counterfeit products including electronics items, clothes, shoes, bags, perfumes and fashion accessories, among others.
It joined other 32 physical markets tagged by the USTR despite efforts by Philippine law enforcement agencies in collaboration with the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (Ipophl).
The USTR noted that Greenhills management had implemented a “three-strikes” rule to penalize sellers of counterfeit goods. And that the National Committee on Intellectual Property Rights was also working with the mall’s management to transition the center into a high-end shopping destination.
“This program includes efforts at rezoning the mall and shifting sellers to local products through incentives and premium locations in the mall,” it said in the report.
While the transition program has been a welcome development for IP rights holders, the USTR said that Greenhills continues to gain attention on social media as a hot spot for fake goods, with reports of counterfeit items being stored in hidden rooms.
Right holders continue to wait and see if the transition program will result in addressing the volume of counterfeit goods, it added.
On a positive note, the USTR said the Ipophl had reported a significant increase in the value of seized counterfeit goods to $617.8 million as of end-September last year, higher than 2022’s $471.4 million.
“An Ipophl official noted that the increase in seizures reflects the Philippine government’s improved enforcement efforts and better coordination with right owners rather than increased illicit trade, and also highlighted that Ipophl works closely with local government officials to further reduce counterfeit goods in their cities,” it added.
The 2024 NML also listed 38 online markets as allowing sales of counterfeit goods, including Shopee that is popular in the Philippines.
The focus of the year’s report was illicit online pharmacies and counterfeit medicines that the USTR said were a “growing threat to public health.”
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