State Agency on Intellectual Property (AGEPI) conducted today, June 23, a press conference, in which was presented the National Report on the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights in the Republic of Moldova, for 2013.
The event was attended by Lilia Bolocan, Director General of AGEPI, Serghei Diaconu, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, Veacheslav Soltan, Head of Information Technologies and Computer Crime Investigations Department, Prosecutor General’s Office and Heiko Wild, Head of the Office of the European Union Border Assistance Mission to Moldova and Ukraine (EUBAM), Chisinau.
Lilia Bolocan, Director General of AGEPI, said that this report is prepared the second year running and is the only publication in the country, which inserts in its pages the up-to-day situation on the phenomena of counterfeiting and piracy, and the evolution and the impact that these phenomena have on right holders, consumers, national economy and society. At the same time, AGEPI Director General thanked all the institutions involved for their contribution to the realization of this study.
“Counterfeiting and piracy are not new phenomena. For centuries artists and inventors have been seen their creations copied, and with intensification of the trend of globalization, market integration and increase of the digital information flow (the Internet), the number of violations of intellectual property rights has become alarming. When talking about the mechanism for implementation of intellectual property rights, we talk without fail about the phenomena of counterfeiting and piracy. There is no country in the world that does not face these phenomena, which bring great harm to the world economy”, specified Lilia Bolocan.
In the event, Serghei Diaconu, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, took stock of actions taken by the Ministry of Internal Affairs in order to counteract the phenomena of counterfeiting and piracy in the Republic of Moldova.
“I would like to mention the importance of creation in 2012 within AGEPI of the Observatory on Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights, which aims at monitoring the situation on the phenomena of counterfeiting and piracy. At the same time, in 2013 we created within the General Inspectorate of Police a subdivision specialized in combating intellectual property offences. Although it has been a year quite complicated in terms of the changes that took place at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the data shows that we managed both to lift the investigated cases and the number of cases to counteract these phenomena. In 2013, 136 cases of illegal use of trademark without the consent of the right holder were documented, 13 cases of copyright violations were detected, it was stopped the illegal activity of three economic agents engaged in counterfeiting and placing on the market of counterfeit foodstuffs and household goods, worth over 1 million lei”, said Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs.
“Today’s report comes as a mechanism for cooperation between AGEPI, MIA, CS and Prosecutor General’s Office in the field of protection of intellectual property rights. This study aims to sensitize society on the phenomena of counterfeiting and piracy, which has flourished in recent years due to the development of information technologies. Currently, the Prosecutor General’s Office is investigating 10 criminal cases, especially in the field of copyright”, said Veacheslav Soltan, Head of Information Technologies and Computer Crime Investigations Department.
“The EUBAM Mission actively cooperates with all public authorities. These phenomena are not a national scourge, but overall, that is why EUBAM organized a joint working group with the participation of law enforcement bodies of the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, in order to exchange experience and to get acquainted with the latest information on risk analysis. I also want to mention that the Republic of Moldova makes considerable efforts to improve legislation in this area”, specified Heiko Wild, Head of the Office of the European Union Border Assistance Mission to Moldova and Ukraine (EUBAM), Chisinau.
The report consists of three chapters. In the first chapter is provided general information on the subject examined, in the second chapter are systematized statistical and analytical data on the activities of public authorities for the enforcement of rights and in the third chapter are presented the most important actions carried out during 2013 to prevent counterfeiting and piracy phenomena and to raise consumer awareness about the consequences of these phenomena.
Publication of the report falls into public authorities’ efforts to develop a balanced intellectual property protection system, according to the National Intellectual Property Strategy until 2020.
The Report can be found by clicking the link: http://www.stoppirateria.md/pdf/raport_national_2013-ro.pdf
Pictures of the press conference: http://www.privesc.eu/Arhiva/42932/Prezentarea-de-catre-AGEPI-a-raportului-national-privind-respectarea-drepturilor-de-proprietate-intelectuala-in-Republica-Moldova--pentru-anul-2013
