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GM Corporate and Fiduciary Services Ltd. 147/1, St. Lucia Street, Valletta VLT 1185, Malta. |
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+(356) 2123 5341 |
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The findings of the ‘European Citizens and Intellectual Property: Perception, Awareness and Behaviour’ survey commissioned by the European Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) were published in a report yesterday, 23th of March[1]. The survey questioned 26,555 EU citizens, 500 of these were Maltese, aged 15 and over about their perceptions of intellectual property during October of 2016. The survey builds on a previous study carried out in 2013[2].
The survey shows that there is widespread support for intellectual property rights among EU citizens. 97% of respondents believed that it is important that inventors, creators and performing artists can protect their rights and be paid for their work. 70% of respondents said that nothing can justify the purchase of counterfeit goods, and 78% believed that buying counterfeits had a negative effect on businesses and jobs. Yet, the survey shows that the tolerance for buying counterfeits has increased since the 2013 study. The main reason for this was identified to be that a consumer feels that the original product is too expensive.
The initiative of the EUIPO to carry out the survey is to be commended. The reach of intellectual property rights has in recent years attracted some criticism. In the EU, some aspects of the Commission’s proposal to reform copyright have been criticised for granting more intellectual property rights. It is hoped that the public perception, as stated by António Campinos (EUIPO Executive Director), “will continue to have a vital role to play in the years ahead, by providing policymakers, businesses and citizens with impartial facts on which to base the debate on the way forward.”
[1] European Citizens and Intellectual Property: Perception, Awareness and Behaviour (2017):
[2] The European Citizens and Intellectual Property: Perception, Awareness and Behaviour (2013):
https://euipo.europa.eu/ohimportal/documents/11370/80606/IP+perception+study
