Police and other authorities seized $2 million in counterfeit goods yesterday in Chinatown at 415 Canal Street. The haul included "enough fake Louis Vuitton clutch bags, bogus Kate Spade calfskin totes and faux Fendis to keep hundreds of low-rent supermodels happy through all 12 days of Christmas," reports the Times' Michael Wilson. Police Captain Kevin McGowan said, "I'm not saying these people are associated with terrorist organizations but some counterfeit rings are. It's a great way to destroy our economy." International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition president Tim Trainer says that consumers, while thinking they are getting a great deal, must remember that buying counterfeit goods can fund other illegal practices, like narcotics, prostitution, and gun-running.
There is a great brandchannel article about the counterfeit purse business, which reports that two 18year–olds who held a counterfeit purse party (the new black of Tupperware parties, we guess) were arrested.
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I'm surprised that the quoted value of the seized goods ($2 million) appears to be the value of the counterfeit goods and not that of a similar quantity of the real thing. In most counterfeit/piracy cases, the media usually uses the latter figure, i.e. Microsoft lost $4.5 billion in business because of piracy or the RIAA reports that $400 trillion worth of music was traded illegally online.
And I love the terrorism quote. After the Cold War, the US struggled for years to find a boogie man to blame for all the world's ills. Turns out it's the terrorists. Even when it was the Russkies, I knew it was the terrorists.
A great way to destroy the economy is by selling counterfeit French and Italian hand bags?
Counterfeits actually help the genuine brand. Most people can not afford and will never buy a $500 purse. Most women will buy at least one purse for about $20 at some point in their lives. Whether it's a $20 fake luxury brand or a real $20 WalMart purse, the luxury company gets $0 from that customer directly. However, everyone carrying around a fake purse is a walking advertisement. When you carry a fake, you don't want people to know it's fake, either. So you dress up in general and act like you're a regular $500 purse buyer. Suddenly, the city is awash with the luxury logo with people acting like $500 purses are normal for them. Then other people, the semi / affluent who luxury marketers actually want to reach, who might or might not purchase the real thing, begin to think "wow, that logo is hot - and if she can have it, so can I!" The brand benefits from fakes.
Jason makes the connection to software, and the same thing works there. Many companies in developing nations cannot afford legit licenses for MS Office. MS simply can't get $$$ from them, because they don't have it. So they use pirate copies. Then what happens? All the workers are trained in MS Office, and all the businesses are producing Word docs and Excel spreadsheets and emailing them to each other. If their businesses do become successful, and they can afford the licenses, MS will come knocking with a bill. MS's Global Domination continues.
The assertion that money from counterfeit bags goes to narcotics or gun-running is not supported by any evidence in the NYT article or the brandchannel one. It might be true, but we are given no evidence. Co-opting the war on terrorism for every petty crime (and I am hard pressed to think of something more petty than a fake purse) diverts our attention from the fact that WE HAVE NO SOLID PLAN IN IRAQ and AL-QAEDA IS STILL OUT THERE.
phew... I need a lunch break!
In other news, Police Captain McGowan's wife, mistress, three sisters and seven daughters will be receiving a nice pile of booty on Christmas morning. Just kidding: don't sue me, please, City of New York.
woah, wait. There were people on Canal St. in Chinatown selling fake purses? No way! I never knew. Nice job cops for busting that sneaky bootleg purse ring that only people really in the know could buy from.
Don't we have better things to do than to bust designer handbag wannabes? When was the last time you saw a terrorist clutching a Louis Vuitton -- fake or genuine? The real thieves are the designer retail stores that sell these status items for thousands of dollars.
i really love the "don't buy fake purses because you support terrorists" spin. it's just like those awful drug ads that claim if someone smokes a joint she/he is responsible for killing small children in columbia and financing terrorism. meanwhile our president's serving turkey in iraq to support a war that is little more than a thinly veiled oil grubbing venture...
yes to all of the above. But come on... Can you really have such enormous amounts of openly illegal activity virtually on top of the epicenter of criminal justice agencies? I mean all the courts are right there. I'd always assumed for so much open criminal activity to take place within view of the courts themselves, that there was an agreement to look the other way, or perhaps an understanding that the Chinese community would "police itself." When something like this happens, I assume that somebody powerful pissed another powerful person off....?
Or maybe the police came under extra pressure from the "respectable" business community around the holidays... I think the above theory that the fakes help instead of hurt the brands is true. Maybe the big retailers know this-- but they thought that if they squashed the fakes they could eke out a few more sales from that tiny margin of people who would buy a fake if available, but otherwise might buy the real thing... and that the fakes will all be back out there soon.
I’m going to disagree with Matt. Knock-offs devalue the brand by making it commonplace. Hypothetically: I spend $500 on a purse for designer prestige and exclusivity. I WANT people to recognize my money and fine taste. The minute that purse becomes available on a street corner, and anyone can have it, why would I want to carry mine anymore? GOD FORBID someone thinks that MINE is a knock-off, puh-leeze. My purse has lost all of it’s “specialness” and any originality that I thought it had. I don’t want a bag that someone might think is a fake. Not for $500. The good news for the high-end purse manufacturers is that I may go back and buy myself a new, better purse and hope to god I don’t see it by a hot dog cart the next day. I bet you that Kate Spade, over priced and over rated as her handbags may be, is constantly trying to recapture the allure of her first little black box handbag. I see new bags with logoed patterns and stylized trim and detail - - detail that can be readily copied. In my opinion Kate Spade designs used to be original and special. Not anymore thanks to those terrorists down in Chinatown. Poor Kate. I'll go to Anya Hindmarch and have her make a bag for me with my own face on it. www.beabag.com
Copy that!
i agree that the knockoffs do de-value the brand. for many companies like louis vuitton, they don't need to really do a lot of advertising. however, they have built a reputation over many years. they can put up collateral at their own locations because people who know go to find them. for me, as an owner of multiple real vuitton purses, i just think that some of the knockoffs are just tacky as hell. some of the fakes just keep getting better, but i haven't met a fake louis bag that i couldn't pick out. :)
I gave my authentic LV's away. The last thing I want is the same handbags as a 13 year old.
Helps the companies? HA!
Some things to remember the next time you go to a "purse party"
From a whio tv story:
Are You Funding Terrorism?
Most of us would never consider sending a single dime to a terrorist group and yet, some of us may be doing just that.
There's alarming new evidence from the government that terrorist groups are making money off counterfeit goods.
In a hidden camera we're searching a flea market for knock-offs, counterfeit designer and licensed clothing.
The deals may save you big bucks, but it's money in the bank for profiteers who'll stop at nothing.
International trade expert Professor Daniel Chow at Ohio State University Law School says counterfeiting is often well organized and targets consumers craving for brand names.
Professor Chow says, "A lot of the entities that are involved for example in smuggling, in narcotics, in prostitution. A lot of the same criminal gangs are involved in counterfeiting."
Some say though, the counterfeit trade is even worse than gangs and organized crime.
We could be handing over our money to the enemy.
Tim Trainer is a former customs officials now, with the International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition and He represents the companies ripped off by knockoffs.
Trainer says, "there are cases where there's been evidence found to link money from counterfeiting to some of the groups in the middle east."
Is it happening in Ohio?
Our expert has no direct evidence of it, but says it makes sense. Professor Chow says, "some of these organizations which are involved in the sale of illegal drugs, narcotics that they have been linked in the past with terrorism." And what about consumers? Most have no idea where their money is going.
Melinda, a counterfeit goods buyers says, "I've probably been buying knockoff products for years."
Melinda and her friend Jennifer bought counterfeit purses and other products from friends at that all-American venue, the flea market. They were bargains.
Jennifer says,"was I going to pay 20 dollars for this knockoff, or 1100 dollars for the exact same bag?"
They didn't realize there could be a link between their bags and terrorist groups.
Melinda stated, "if money from knockoffs were going to terrorist activities, I think not only I would think twice, but a lot of people would think twice."
Spotting a knock off can be tough. The price is the best tip off, but from hats to videos, the Treasury Department says Americans buy 200-billion dollars worth of counterfeit items each year.
So what are authorities doing about the problem? The U.S. Customs Service is investigating.
U.S. Customs Agent, Nancy Sherman-Kratzer says, "Intelligence indicates that there is possibly a link and the U.S. Customs Service, and here at the IPR Center, we are looking into those possibilities."
Investigators have been probing ties between terrorist and knockoffs since the first world trade center bombing almost a decade ago.
Now some of those buyers regret what may have truly been killer bargains.
The U.S. Customs Office has formed a special task force called Operation Green Quest.
It's mission is to investigate sources of terrorist funding including counterfeit goods.
The violation of intellectual property rights by the distribution or sale of counterfeit goods offers an attractive, profitable method for making good money
while avoiding the penalties associated with high risk activities such as smuggling or drug trafficking. The latter are more likely to attract law enforcement attention and can carry hefty legal costs for those caught doing these things.
Selling counterfeit products, however, is a relatively risk free activity. Even if caught in the act a merchant probably will suffer nothing worse than the loss of
the money he spent to purchase the goods and having the counterfeit products confiscated. A merchant rarely is jailed for selling or distributing counterfeit merchandise.
What is the appeal of counterfeit merchandise? People around the world, regardless of income level, want to buy name brand products and, if offered a discount, will grab it up. Counterfeit products bear the labels of Sony, Ralph
Lauren, Calvin Klein, Philip Morris, Black and Decker, Nike, Reebok, and Sunbeam but can be had for a price that is 60% to 70% of the original. The market for products that violate intellectual property rights is huge and encompasses all products, including clothing, stereo equipment, household appliances, televisions, liquor, cigarettes, compact discs, dvds, and shoes.
TERRORISM AND COUNTERFEITING:
It is important to understand the facts about international terrorism, particularly terrorism in Latin America, in order to appreciate the full implications of the counterfeiting activity. [The following is drawn from the recently published US Department of State, PATTERNS OF GLOBAL TERRORISM 2002.] Last year international terrorist incidents fell to their lowest level in 34 years—199 attacks in 2002. If we examine the details we find that the incidents and fatalities are concentrated in two specific areas of the world, Latin America and South Asia
India and Colombia together accounted for almost 60% of all international terrorist attacks (34% in India and 23% in Colombia). For the first time infive years, a country other than Colombia accounted for most of the terrorist attacks.
There were 725 deaths worldwide from international terrorism. 80% of these were caused in 68 attacks that occurred in five countries (India, Pakistan, Israel, Russia, and Indonesia). Islamic extremists were implicated in all of these attacks.
India, with 31, and Israel, with 25, experienced the most attacks that caused deaths.
Out of 2013 injuries worldwide from international terrorist attacks, 99% ofthese occurred in seven countries (India, Pakistan, Philippines, Israel, Russia, Indonesia, and Kenya).
Looking back over the last two decades, the vast majority of international terrorist activities in our Hemisphere have been planned and carried out by Marxist-Leninist groups rather than Islamic extremists. The Colombian terrorism has been directed chiefly against the people of Colombia and the foreign companies who are building and maintaining oil pipelines. Although the FARC and the ELN have shied away from attacking foreign targets outside of Colombia, they have conducted vicious bombings and kidnappings inside Colombia. These attacks have left thousands of Colombians grieving and suffering.
Although not very active, Islamic extremists have made their presence felt through isolated terrorist attacks in South America. The 1992 bombing of the Israeli Embassy and the 1994 attack on a Jewish Community Center, both in Buenos Aires, reportedly were staged from the tri-border area in northeast Argentina.
Buying knockoffs funds terrorism huh?
Does it cause cancer too?
Maybe cavities?
Please. Does buying pepperoni fund the mafia?
If you buy this line of crap, I've got a lovely bag to show you...
I am curious to know if any knock-offs ever make it to poor people by way of donation. Recently there was a counterfeit nike bust in ontario. I heard the shoes are going o be destroyed. How many people think the shoes should be donated to an organization such as: The United Way, The Salvation Army, or The Canadian Red Cross?
I am hoping to gain support and info regarding such an idea.
Oh Please, they may have found a link from the first WTC bombing...A DECADE AGO! You think with 10 years to investigate they would have come up with something better than "maybe". And to you women who begrudge us "little people" from being fashionable on a budget, take your authentic LV's and stick them up your rear. You are the only ones that care that its real, so whats the worry? I know I have better things to do with my time than eye-ball someones bag to see if its real or not. Maybe you don't? I am so sorry that our $20 fakies may make you look like some "commoner". If I had more money than I knew what to do with, I sure as hell wouldn't fork over $1500 for 1 purse when there are a million very worthy charities to give to. Where are your priorities?
Oh my God. WHAT A LOAD OF CRAP! NONE of that money goes to terrorists! Goodness! The people selling those purses know that everyone loves a good looking "fake" designer brand purse. That's why normal people making their living sell those things! You think they would give that money they made away to terrorists? Who wouldn't buy such cute purses that look like the real ones when they're just $20!?! ...I definetly would, and none of this bull about terrorists is gonna stop me.
If the money went to terroists i dont think that
they would be selling these bags still...
oh and to "id rather carry a paper bag" that was really a stupid comment that you made! "i gave all of my authentic LV's away. The last thing i want is to have the same handbags as a 13 year old." I think that was really ignorant and selfish...CONGRATS!!!! YOU HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO GO AND SPEND 2G'S ON A PURSE THAT THE REST OF US "13 YEAR OLDS" BUY FOR $20 ON CANAL STREET.
Some things to remember before you post something stupid online:
EVERYONE IS RICH...US "POOR PEOPLE" WORK HARD TO BUY WHAT WE BUY.
Dont be so ignorant.
Dont brag: " Oh i gave away all my bags so I'm not looking like some scumbag 13 year old poser."
If the money went to terroists i dont think that
they would be selling these bags still...
oh and to "id rather carry a paper bag" that was really a stupid comment that you made! "i gave all of my authentic LV's away. The last thing i want is to have the same handbags as a 13 year old." I think that was really ignorant and selfish...CONGRATS!!!! YOU HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO GO AND SPEND 2G'S ON A PURSE THAT THE REST OF US "13 YEAR OLDS" BUY FOR $20 ON CANAL STREET.
Some things to remember before you post something stupid online:
EVERYONE IS RICH...US "POOR PEOPLE" WORK HARD TO BUY WHAT WE BUY.
Dont be so ignorant.
Dont brag: " Oh i gave away all my bags so I'm not looking like some scumbag 13 year old poser."
If the money went to terroists i dont think that
they would be selling these bags still...
oh and to "id rather carry a paper bag" that was really a stupid comment that you made! "i gave all of my authentic LV's away. The last thing i want is to have the same handbags as a 13 year old." I think that was really ignorant and selfish...CONGRATS!!!! YOU HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO GO AND SPEND 2G'S ON A PURSE THAT THE REST OF US "13 YEAR OLDS" BUY FOR $20 ON CANAL STREET.
Some things to remember before you post something stupid online:
EVERYONE IS RICH...US "POOR PEOPLE" WORK HARD TO BUY WHAT WE BUY.
Dont be so ignorant.
Dont brag: " Oh i gave away all my bags so I'm not looking like some scumbag 13 year old poser."
I am the inventor of the magnetic snap, and I manufacture these for all the famous brand names mentioned above. The knock-offs directly steal from me and my company. They do not pay for the use of my wonderful inventions and they directly affect the number of employess IN THE USA that I need to make and sell our products. It affects the taxes I pay and my employees pay.
Yes, something considered mundane like handbags and fasteners affect people's lives and livelihoods in profoiund ways. Theft of trademark, brand, design, and other intellectual propoerty is still stealing and wrong.
PEOPLE WHO SELL AND PEOPLE WHO BUY COUNTERFEITS ARE THIEVES. They steal directly from people like me.
Howard Yeah thinks The poor people gonna buy a purse thats worth $1500 When they can buy the same looking version for $20 .... I'd personally buy the cheaper one .... Paying $1500 for a purse .. I could buy something else for that price .. When someone sells something at the cheap price sure it's out in the open that theres something funny about the price but It if looked like a retail version thats worth $1500 an they are selling for $20 well I would think $20 is a deal and then some ... Besides all yeah consumers sell things at such high prices .... Prime example Look at windows xp Home an Xp Pro same thing I bought both win xp home and win xp Pro an yeah know something I feel ripped off when I bought Windows XP Pro .....
Just like Bill Gates needs to put his money on his software an stop being a lamer an charging people for chat what ever happened to free speach ............................Whats next government gonna charge to talk to others on the street... Or mabye Charging to breathe ......
MSG TO BILL GATES ; Yeah software was full of spyware An there system ops abuse there power at times too ... Pay for chat that was supposed to right porn bots ... I looks in there MSN HOSTED rooms What I see an gets whispered by is A freakin PORN BOT
But it's a crime to pirate software
When The Main makers sell software with bugs flaws "Spy Ware"
As for the purse thingy it be the same vote
someone could buy More purses even if they not made by the makers who charge to much for what people can't always afford unless yeah is bill gates then your fine .......
People who go to these purse parties should be ashamed of themselves, it IS stealing, it DOES fund terrorism (see cbsnews.com under Knock-Off Sales A Terror Threat?) and there's a REASON why they're blackmarket. It's all part of a bigger picture it's not simply buying a phony purse. Plus, am I supposed to believe that a woman with walmart shoes has a louis vuitton purse that cameron diaz couldn't get without getting on a waiting list? If you can't afford a $700 purse, don't get one, have some decency!
Forget about bombs. It makes perfect sense for Al Qaeda to be manufacturing fake Kate Spade, Fendi, Prada and Louis Vuitton purses not to mention Chanel suits. Any terrorist in Chanel and Vuitton can effortlessly glide past White House security and hit Bush over the head with his purse.
To the guy who invented the magnet clip. You're totally right about the knockoff theives stealing your magnet clip and all the tax junk and all that. You are getting screwed over and a lot of other people are probably right? Now, is it that big of a loss? How big of a loss is it rreally? are you starving on the street because you lost your business? No, your still probably doing fine right? Now you think you're getting screwed over? I think more people are getting screwed than you! Instead of some lame blonde buying a $15,000 purse because of her status quo, I mean if she didn't buy it you'd think she could go and buy a nice couch or a new TV, but if she can afford a $15000 purse which is no more a nessesity than a TV, she probably has LOTS of money. Now MAYBE she could put off on that purse for the month, and give that money to the starving people in let's say.... AFRICA... I think that $15,000 would save not only a few peoples lives but HUNDREDS... it would bring clean water it would build a village or a school to teach children ... when one of those children can become a doctor or an engineer and maybe help build those poor villages when he's older. Maybe that child can make a difference. BUT then what are these blondes thinking when that comes to mind besides "i want my cute purse"... She thinks... someone else will do it... someone else will always help the other people in other countries. I mean if you can't see it, it doesn't exist right? Soooo... i think your magnet clip thing is the least of the problems. Sure you could make more money and become a bigger corporation... but then the cycle begins again. You will have millions, you're wife will want a "cute louis vuitton like the girl I look up to paris hilton". Why would you want a status quo and the same bag as her when the only reason she became famous was through something terrible and disgusting. It makes me hate america. People wanna wear the same bag as the girl who became famous by having rich and smart parents and showed her poontang being pounded on the internet. WOW is she ever CLEVER AND SMART!!! I WANNA BE JUST LIKE HER!!!!!!! holy fuck... Why don't we carry the same wallet as someone smart and changed the world, and made a difference. Look at all the 13 year old girls today... there all a bunch of raving sluts who wanna own the same bag as a slut who has sex to become famous... I DONT GET IT!!!! sure she's frikin hot and probably a girl would become a lesbian to be with her... but... Moraly... is that America... Ya i guess it is!! and no wonder why other countries HATE america... it's because of reasons like that. If you have any objections to what i wrote... e-mail me at stpi0030@algonquincollege.com
DEAR SIR/MA,
MY NAME IS MR JOE WILLIAMS,I AM LIVE IN LAGOS NIGERIA,THE TYPE OF BUSINESS I DO IS TO PURCHASE A PRODUCT FOR A CLINET.AND NOW I AM IN A BIG BUSINESS WHICH I WANT YOU TO HELP ME OUT SO THAT IT WILL BE MORE FASTER.I WOULD LIKE TO PURCHASE A PRODUCT AND I WANT IT SEND TO YOUR PLACE AND IT THE END OF THE MONTH I WILL SEND YOU A CHEQUE AND ALSO DO THE PICK MY SELF TO MY PLACE VIA UPS OR FEDEX,I WILL BE HAPPY IF YOU CAN HELP ME OUT JUST FOR 3 MONTH ONLY,I WILL PAY YOUR PRICE IF IS OK BY ME.PLEASE MAIL ME ASAP.
YOUR RESPONSE I HIGHLY NEEDED.
THANKS
COLE BAILEY.
I was recently in the Louis Vuitton flagship store or 57th street and 5th avenue and spotted the beautiful LV Damier Geant Massager bag. However, I choked when I saw the price. Anyway, on my way back to work, I looked at all the traditional LV handbags and thought about all the bootlegs made of those and said to myself, "They can never replicate the Damier Geant 2004/2005 Collection series". Lo and behold, while on another lunch break downtown, I spotted the counterfeit version of the Damier Geante Souverain bag and the Massager bag.
Since I work right by the flagship store, I notice the difference in counterfeiters quickly, and the salespeople have told me what to look for. The bootleg bag was slightly lighter than the real one, however that was the only telltale thing, and who would really even notice that? Anyway, I bought both bags from the bootlegger, and I am not ashamed. If I had a million dollars, I would still do so. LV is not going to hurt from me not spending $1,500 on a laptop bag. Life will go on for them. I am happy about my purchase and don't regret it one bit! :p
I would just like to say to the guy that invented the magnetic clip that people buying knockoffs are not hurting your business. The vast majority of people that are buying the knockoffs are people who would not be able to affod the expensive purses or people who realize how ridiculous it is to spend over $1,000 on a purse. People who are concernde about buying name brand will still buy the authentic ones. These knockoffs are not taking any money away from you.
I have purchased counterfit watches for the last 20 years for myself and my friends. Rarely does one break.
What makes a purse worth $700?????? For $700 you should be able to get enough high quality leather to make a saddle for a horse -- not a tiny little purse!
If counterfit goods are such low quality -- how come mine seem to last so long - look so good - and work so well?
Do the math -- 144 square inches = 1 square foot. One purse uses at the most 3 square feet of leather. At this price -- the leather produced from a single cow when made into designer purses -- one of the most expensive things on the planet.
A well made designer purse is beautiful -- but a counterfit one is not necessarily junk either.
I don't know what the problem really is...
I mean, those who can afford authentic Louis Vuitton products will still do so, and those who like them but don't have the money, or think it's useless to spend it on a purse, will buy the imitation one. In any case, I think the brand, Louis Vuitton, is favoured, since the name, style, design, and type of product that it sells can be known by more people by these means. And maybe, once that those who bought the replicas gain enough money to buy an original may do so, because really, when you don't have enough you don't think of spending over $600 on a purse, but if you do, why bother getting a copy if you can get the original?
That's just my humble opinion, but anyhow, I understand LV's anger, but I don't think that will be enough to end up with the production of "fake bags".
what you all fail to remember is that whether or not the money goes to terrorist groups, the countferfeit bags are being made by children and slaves. By buying a countferfeit bag, youre contributing to child and slave labor.
a lot of your opinions and views are also based on the prices of the LV bags. Sure, it is more logical to buy the 20 dollar bag, but you have to remember what you are supporting. also, a lot of people are saying that it is ridiculous to buy a $600 dollar bag, then why are you buying the 20 dollar one? its obvious that anyone who buys a LV bag is because its a status symbol. if youre so against expensive bags then why do you want people to think you can afford one?
I would like to speak to the points about terrorism and child labor. Do those of you who say it supports these things think that if there was no replicas there wouldn't be child labor or terrorism. What about all the legal items we buy on a daily basis that say made in China. Lighters, Pens, notebooks, clothes, etc. Aren't all Americans guilty of supporting child labor or low wages in other countries? There is always going to be some sort of goods that people use to save or make money. Why focus on trivial items that don't physically harm anyone? Maybe CC and LV should use the money to fight more important battles.
I also agree with the point that people who can afford an authentic designer item will buy them, those who cannot will buy fake ones. I personally buy both, If there is a design that I really love and can buy a real one then I do. If there is one that I want to try out, I buy a replica. In my opinon it doesn't hurt these companies. If the replicas are made with a magnetic snap and the maker doesn't profit, I don't think he would profit it wasn't made either. So what difference does it make?