CII’s Manual on Anti-Counterfeiting Technologies

Almost a fortnight ago, in a welcome and long-due move, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) released a 52-page manual titled “Technological Solutions: A primer for Combating Counterfeiting & Piracy” which as the name explains deals with steps to counter counterfeiting. A reliable source informs SpicyIP that Prof.Avi Chaudhary, Kezzler’s India associate, played a key role in authoring the manual (Readers may recall Prashant’s crisp and concise post on the use of mass-serialization by Roche as a means of battling bootleggers.This technique was created by Kezzler, a well-known entity in the field of anti-counterfeiting technologies). The manual notes that the pharma and FMCG sectors are worst hit by this menace and the implications for the credibility of the former are critical. Mr.Basheer’s post on the various aspects of this problem is recommended reading.

Thoughtfully enough, the manual states that its purpose is not to analyse at length the problem of counterfeiting in India, but to present Indian players with a ready reference guide on the technological solutions available to them in accordance with their needs (refer to our earlier post on anti-counterfeiting technologies); not just that, the availability of too many anti-counterfeiting options in the global market too could lead to confusion which is where this manual comes handy. Also, the manual apparently reflects the prevalent opinion among Indian players that criminal deterrents would best serve their interests and that of the public than civil action given the gravity of the problem in critical areas such as Pharma.

The manual also attempts to bust certain myths and misconceptions about anti-counterfeiting technologies. For instance, it goes on to show that not all such technologies are expensive and cost-effective and reliable options too are available (again refer to Prashant’s post). The need for a multidisciplinary engagement from various departments in a company has been emphasised to ensure that an optimal and tailor-made solution is chosen.

The manual helps in this too by laying down a few essential criteria which may help one narrow down one’s options. Deploying such technologies could also boost efforts of Pharma companies which actively pursue differential-pricing.An extremely relevant point too has been made in the same vein; that counterfeiting could lead to protectionist measures in the name of safeguarding public interest has been rightly pointed out which makes it imperative not only on the players, but also the Government to get its act together and crack the whip on counterfeiters.