Amazon And US Govt. To Act Jointly Against Counterfeit Goods

(RTTNews) - Online retail giant Amazon.com (AMZN) Tuesday announced a joint operation with the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center (IPR Center) to stop counterfeit goods from entering the US.

The partnership will rely on intelligence gathered from Amazon's Counterfeit Crimes Unit, logistics company DHL, and US Customs and Border Patrol (CBP).

"The IPR Center plays a critical role in securing the global supply-chain to protect the health and safety of the American public," said IPR Center Director Steve Francis. "However, our efforts are increased with partners like Amazon to identify, interdict, and investigate individuals, companies, and criminal organizations engaging in the illegal importation of counterfeit products. This joint operation is our latest public-private initiative bringing us one step closer to border security."

"Operation Fulfilled Action" relies on Amazon's dominant positioning as both a distributor and marketplace for products.

The operation will analyze data and conduct targeted inspections aimed at preventing counterfeit products from entering the U.S. supply chain. The IPR Center and Amazon will leverage evidence obtained during the operation to expand on-going investigations, with the goal of holding bad actors accountable to the fullest extent of the law.

This operation will be led by Amazon's Counterfeit Crimes Unit, which was created earlier this year to support law enforcement investigations and to initiate civil litigation against counterfeiters.