The price attracts
Almost 38% of consumers in Germany have already deliberately purchased a counterfeit product. Jewelry, clothing and technology are particularly popular - due to the low price. This is the result of the "Product Piracy" survey conducted by the auditing and consulting organization EY (source).
Pleasant bargain for the consumer, bad for the companies? It's more than that...
Plagiarism and product piracy lead to immense financial damage
The fact is that plagiarism and product piracy cause huge damage to companies and the economy - an estimated 412 billion euros worldwide in 2019 (source). The film and music industries in particular, as well as software developers, lose huge amounts of revenue every year. But there are also downsides for consumers.
"There is hardly any product left that is safe from counterfeiting."
Rüdiger Stihl, Chairman of the Board of the Action Group against Product and Trademark Piracy (APM) (Quelle)
The issue of plagiarism and product piracy therefore also affects products such as medicines, food, spare parts and electronic devices. These often have dangerous ingredients or poor quality. Medical products are not only ineffective, but can also be hazardous to the health of the consumer. Counterfeit spare parts for cars and machines can cause accidents and damage.
Innovations fail to materialize
But even for the companies, it is not just the direct financial loss. Product piracy may also slow down innovations. Because if there is a risk that innovations could be affected by plagiarism and product piracy, companies could be considerably more reluctant to invest in research and development.
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