It
was a banner year for intellectual property enforcement, with U.S. Customs and
Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents seizing
nearly 25,000 shipments of infringing goods from abroad in fiscal year 2011.
The
number one source country for knockoff products continues to be mainland China, which accounted for
62 percent or $124.7 million of the total domestic value of seizures. Hong Kong was second, with 18
percent, followed by India, with 3 percent.
For
the first time since 2005, copycat footwear did not top the list of seized
goods. Instead, shipments of consumer electronics — especially cell phones —
were the most valuable products seized, with about $39 million worth of fake
electronics halted at the border. Also on the top 10 list of seized products:
pharmaceuticals, optical media, clothes and perfume. Read more here.
