Minimizing Trademark Counterfeiting And Preserving Brand Equity

Goodwill associated with a trademark, an aspect of brand equity, is fostered in the marketplace only after the deployment of considerable resources and effort. Counterfeiters train their sights on a trademark as soon as it gains a foothold in the consciousness of consumers. A corporation will find many eager counterfeiters because the profits to be derived from counterfeiting activity are huge. The well-oiled machinery of counterfeiting quickly acquires roots and a Hydra-headed distribution network. It is in the interest of a corporation to implement an anticounterfeiting program that is adaptable and effective prior to even marketing a product. After the launch of a product, the anti-counterfeiting measures must continue, albeit in a modified form. In this article we provide a bird’s-eye view of some of the measures that a corporation may take to minimize the probability of its brand being poached (perhaps, even destroyed) and to increase the profile of risk for counterfeiting activity.