Within the framework of the TAIEX support instrument of the European Commission, in cooperation with the State Industrial Property Office, on 30 and 31 May 2013, a Regional TAIEX Workshop on the topic “Crime in the Field of Intellectual Property” was held in Skopje. A total of 111 representatives from the institutions in the region, involved in the system of protection of intellectual property rights, participated in the workshop, of which 75 representatives from the Republic of Macedonia and 36 representatives from abroad.
Eminent experts from INTERPOL, EUROPOL, the Danish Patent and Trademark Office, the Pharmaceutical Safety Institute, the UK Institute of Commerce, the Italian Financial Police and the Dutch Customs Administration were engaged for the workshop.
The aim of the workshop was to review the problem of organized crime in the field of intellectual property in an international context and to encourage cooperation between the competent institutions in the region and beyond.
Special emphasis was placed on monitoring counterfeiting and piracy channels, tackling the “counterfeiting pyramid”, the trade in counterfeit medicines over the Internet, international cooperation and raising consumer awareness of health risks and threats to their safety.
The workshop will contribute to promoting mutual cooperation between institutions in the region and raising the level of protection of intellectual property rights in accordance with European and international standards.