The struggle of copyright holders from counterfeiting reached the Russian DIY market. Thus, a major German manufacturer of garden tools Stihl from the beginning of year filed in Russian courts about 500 lawsuits against dealers in fake products, claiming to recover from each 100 thousand. Such a campaign can intimidate the sellers, but is unlikely to affect the entire supply chain of counterfeit goods, experts say.From the beginning, the tool manufacturer Stihl has submitted to the Russian courts about 500 infringers of intellectual property. About this “Kommersant” said Director General of the legal group “Intellectual property” (is engaged in legal support of the campaign Stihl in Russia) Vasiliy Abramov. As follows from the filing of cases was about 300 statements. Every lawsuit requires Stihl 100 thousand roubles, According to mister Abramova, the majority of respondents individual entrepreneurs (IE), which was engaged in the sale of counterfeit products in brick and mortar stores or markets. Responded to over 100 lawsuits, two cases denied, those decisions are appealed, says the lawyer. In total, he estimates, the number of claims per year can reach about 1 thousand: “For the Russian market of garden machinery is a campaign of unprecedented scale.”Stihl was founded in 1926 in Germany. Produces lawn mowers, saws, sprayers, etc. Today operates in 160 countries. Turnover in 2019 — €3,93 billion, the report says. The total revenue of the Russian company “Andreas Shtil Marketing” and “Calm Sudwest” over the same period to 1.3 billion rubles, follows from the statements in the Kartoteka.EN.In the Russian Stihl say that most on the market of garden technics forged consumables: saw chain, engine oil and spark plugs. Thus, the share of fakes in this segment the company is valued at about 20-30%, and among the ready-made tools, primarily saws, at the level of 5-10%. According to Infoline estimates, in 2020 the turnover of the DIY market in Russia will be at the level of 1.6 trillion rubles., of which 285 billion RUB will be in the garden.The direct damage caused by counterfeiting amounts to “many millions of rubles” every year, also suffering brand image, as the use of low-quality oil, for example, can lead to tool breakage, say Stihl. The company noted that the proliferation of counterfeits in the country depends on the purchasing power of the population and the price of the product, and the situation of counterfeiting in Russia “very different” from European markets.Director of sector for economic security Leroy Merlin Arthur Zaripov said that the problem of counterfeit products is more acute for producers, and the network rarely encounter fakes.Patent attorney, managing partner of the company “Plovers and partners” Sergey Plovers indicates that the courts in such cases are usually collect from the defendant the sum is much less than the stated ISTCom. For example, if the requirement is 100 thousand. the court charges 10-50 thousand rubles. But for the right holder is more important than the judgement is positive: the more granted, the less potential violators will have the desire to sell a product, says Mr. Zuykov.Deputy Chairman of Committee of the Russian Union of Industrialists and entrepreneurs on intellectual property and the creative industries Anatoly Semenov notes that usually such mass filing of lawsuits aimed at intimidating end sellers, but this tactic almost does not affect the wholesale link. In addition, he continues, some individual entrepreneurs, can replace the other, although high-profile campaign and could force traders to reduce purchases of any brand. In General, says the expert, the problem is that the UI can not in principle be integrated in the official distribution, and because working with counterfeit goods.Anatoly Kostyriv
