New tricks to import goods infringing IP

	The Customs sector discovered infringing goods worth more than VND 5,800 billion
	Finding solutions to prevent fake goods, goods infringing intellectual property rights

Representatives of Team 4 in the working session with Blum Vietnam Co., Ltd. on July 31, 2024. Photo: Team 4

Magic for infringing goods

Implementing Plan 1244/KH-TCHQ dated March 26, 2024 of the General Department of Customs on controlling anti-smuggling of counterfeit goods, intellectual property counterfeit goods and goods infringing intellectual property rights in 2024, the Anti-Smuggling Enforcement and IPR Protection Enforcement Unit (Team 4, Anti-Smuggling Investigation Department, General Department of Customs) proactively grasped the situation and implemented measures to promptly detect and handle violations. In particular, the team has focused on risky subjects, items and routes under the direction of the leader of the General Department of Customs.

Regarding the performance, from the beginning of the year until now, Team 4 has discovered 16 cases related to intellectual property infringement. Typically, on June 20, 2024, Team 4 presided over and coordinated with Hai Phong Port Area 2 Customs Branch (Hai Phong Customs Department) to inspect a shipment imported from China showing suspicious signs.

According to the information declared by the importer (headquartered in Yen Bai), the goods are hinges used for BLUMaxi brand kitchen cabinets.

The results of the physical inspection of the goods and the verification conclusions showed that all the goods were hinges used for BLUMaxi brand kitchen cabinets that infringed the BLUM trademark - this is a brand that has been registered for protection in Vietnam. The total number of infringing goods is up to 117,200 products.

Notably, during the handling of the case, Team 4 discovered that the importing enterprise had applied to the Intellectual Property Department (Ministry of Science and Technology) to register a trademark in Vietnam for goods as hinges used for kitchen cabinets brand “BLUMAXI”. The enterprise's application has been accepted as valid by the National Office of Intellectual Property. However, this agency has not yet issued a Protection Certificate for the "BLUMAXI" brand.

According to the representative of Team 4, this is one of the new tricks of violators related to the field of intellectual property. Because, the brand "BLUMAXI" (all letters are capitalized does not violate the intellectual property of the protected trademark BLUM). However, in reality, the imported goods show the word "BLUMaxi" (the three lowercase letters a, x and i in this brand violate the protected brand BLUM).

Therefore, in the handling process, if the agency neither research specifically and meticulously the regulations nor base on the actual situation of goods, it will be very difficult to discover the tricks to hide violations of enterprises.

The case is being further investigated and verified.

To implement Plan 1244/KH-TCHQ to achieve even better results, Team 4 will enhance the use of professional measures to proactively detect, promptly prevent and handle violations in the field of intellectual property, as well as violations of laws in the field of customs in general.

Fake goods cause great damage to genuine businesses

In response to the Customs agency promptly preventing the above intellectual property rights violation, on July 31, 2024, Mr. Albrecht Bartolein, General Director of Blum Vietnam Co., Ltd., the BLUM brand right holder had a meeting with the Anti-Smuggling Investigation Department (Team 4) to discuss and thank the Customs agency for handling many cases related to IPR infringement to the BLUM brand in Vietnam.

Speaking to reporters, Ms. Hoang Bich Ngoc, Head of the representative office of Blum Co., Ltd in Hanoi, said that the problem of counterfeit goods and goods infringing intellectual property directly affects the intellectual property rights of Blum company for its goods and brand in the market; causes confusion for consumers about the quality of the company's goods in the Vietnamese market; affects the company's market share and sales.

Therefore, the seizure of a shipment of BLUMaxi brand - infringing on BLUM's intellectual property rights - has contributed to improving control and seizure of goods infringing on BLUM's intellectual property rights in the Vietnamese market. Thereby, gradually reducing similar violations in the future by enterprises specializing in this item in the market.

The recent arrest also helps the company have more confidence in the effectiveness and professional capacity of the authorities in the process of coordination in the investigation and handling. At the same time, it creates favorable conditions for the company in the process of doing business in the Vietnamese market when the problems of counterfeit goods, pirated goods, and goods infringing intellectual property rights are addressed by the authorities, helping reduce the number of poor-quality goods in the market.