Research On Causes Of And Countermeasures For Counterfeit In China

Product Counterfeiting is indeed a very severe economic problem. In 2009, IACC, international anti-counterfeiting coalition, estimated that the sale of globle counterfeit goods was about 600 billion dollars, and approximately 5%-7% of world trade is counterfeit goods. In fact, as for China at the transforming stage from the planned economic system to the market economic system, the counterfeit is more serious because the cases of counterfeiting happen constantly, and the counterfeit products are emerging in endlessly. Of these cases, there are not only fake fertilizer, fake seed and fake milk powder which harm consumers, and even endenger consumers'lives, but also products forging famous brands that are liked by some consumers. For the counterfeit products and countermeasure for counterfeit, academe in western and eastern countries have made a lot of research work. The western scholars paid more attentions to the demand side, i.e., the consumer, and mainly analyzed why consumers purchase counterfeit goods. It is concluded by some researchers that because the demand for counterfeit products motivates counterfeiters, restraining the demand will treate counterfeit effectively. Compared with western partners, Chinese researchers give their interest in the supply side, i.e., the producer, and analyze why enterprises produce fake products. On basis of Chinese economic development, the author concludes that in China the research should focus on restraining the spread of counterfeit goods. However, at present, there is lack of such literatures in China that combine the intrinsic factor (e.g., the motivation of market principal counterfeiting) with the extrinsic factor (e.g., the defect of the system).Under such background, the author will at first summerize the cause of counterfeit, the behavior of consumers'purchasing counterfeit goods, the anti-counterfeit based on purchasing fake products, and the countermeasure for counterfeit goods by using existing research literature. Secondly, the behaviors of enterprises' counterfeiting and consumers' purchasing fake products and the weakening of the supervision system are analyzed entirely and throughly by using systematically the theories of economics and sociology, and two models, that is, the behavior motivation of enterprises' counterfeiting and the intention of consumers' purchasing fake products, are built up. Thirdly, the source impetus of enterprise's inherent resisting counterfeit is discussed and proposed. Fourthly, the countermeasures for counterfeit in western countries and Taiwan of our country are analyzed and summerized. Finally, on the basis of the conclusions above, a model of comprehensive countermeasure for counterfeit in China is constructed in order to wholely treat counterfeit from three sides, that is, government, enterprise and consumer.1. Research thought and contentThe research of this dissertation will be done as follows:firstly, the counterfeit and the type of consumers' purchasing fake goods are defined; Then, the causes of counterfeit are analyzed from three aspects, that is, the behavior of enterprises' counterfeiting, the behavior of consumers' purchasing fake products and the weakening of supervision; Finally, the countermeasures for counterfeit in China are studied by analyzing the inherent impetus of enterprise's resisting counterfeit and by referring the experience of treatment for counterfeit in western countries and at Taiwan of our country.The dissertation is divided into four parts, and composed of eight chapters, in which parts 3 and 4 are the core of this dissertation.Part 1, the introduction, i.e., Chapter 1, mainly includes the research background, concept definition, research thought and frame, research method, innovation and shortage, In this dissertation, counterfeit is defined to contain two aspects, i.e., the one in brand, trademark, intellectual property and quality content, and the other in index.Part 2, the literature overview, i.e., Chapter 2, reviews the researches in western and eastern countries, including the cause of conterfeit, the behavior of consumers' purchasing counterfeit goods, the anti-counterfeit based on purchasing fake products, and the countermeasure for counterfeit goods, and finds the research angle for the dissertation.Part 3, the cause analysis of counterfeit, includes Chapter 3,4, and 5, discusses the cause of counterfeit spreading from the behavior of enterprises' counterfeiting, the behavior of consumers' purchasing fake products and the weakening of supervision.In Chapter 3, the motivations of enterprises'counterfeiting are studied from internal root and extrinsic factor. The author concludes that the internal root of enterprise' counterfeiting contains pursuing profit by infringing intellectual property and seeking rent, opportunism behavior formed because of information imperfection and resource lack, and risk preference, and that the extrinsic motivation includes the supervision weakening, the inspiring of the intention and behavior of consumer's purchasing counterfeit product, the popularization of the forging technique and Internet, and the system flaws at early stage or during system change period of market economy. The theroy model of the cause of enterprise's counterfeiting is built up, and proved with the case of San-Lu milk powder.In Chapter 4, the behavior of consumer's purchasing couterfeit is analyzed. The author classifies the consumer counterfeit-purchasing as "Unknowingly purchasing a counterfeit good" and "Knowingly purchasing a couterfeit good", and then divides the latter into "Knowingly and voluntarily purchasing a counterfeit good" and "Knowingly and forcedly purchasing a counterfeit good". There are different motivations and countermeasures for the two classifications. The author analyzes the behavior of consumer's buying counterfeit goods from microcosmic view and macroscopic view so as to find a method to restrain the behavior by applying the rational choice theory that Coleman proposed. In order to find out the determinants of consumers'buying each type of counterfeit, the author divides counterfeit products into four types according to the product classification that Bearden and Etzel suggested, i.e., public-luxury (PUL), public-necessity (PUN), private-luxury (PRL) and private-necessity (PRN). For the former three types that consumers purchase proactively in real life, the determinants of consumers'buying them are analyzed respectively, and responding theory models are also built up. The determinant analysis and the model construction provide us with the thought to constrain the behavior of consumers' knowingly purchasing fake goods.In Chapter 5, the weakening of monitoring system is analyzed mainly from such aspects as the imperfect legal system, the offside, vacancy or dislocation of government functions, lack of social regulatory forces (including the consumer's association, industry associations, third-party testing certification bodies, the media, individuals, etc.), and it is concluded that the overall regulatory power is weak.Part 4 is about research on the countermeasure for counterfeit, including Chapter 6,7 and 8.In Chapter 6, the impetus of enterprise's resisting counterfeit inherently is analyzed. In Chapter 7, the experiences of treating counterfeit in western countries and Taiwan of our country are summerized. In Chapter 8, the counterfeit countermeasures in China, are studied, In this part, on the basis of the analysis of the behaviors of microeconomic principals and government, it is concluded that counterfeit should be treated together from inside and outside by using internal and external forces, and just doing so the goal to promote the harmonious development and prosperity of the market will be achived.2. ConclusionsFirstly, counterfeit is caused by enterprises' counterfeiting, consumers' purchasing fake goods as well as weakening of the regulatory power.Secondly, enterprise conterfeiting has deep roots and external factors.Thirdly, consumer counterfeit-purchasing has such two categories as "Unknowingly purchasing a counterfeit good" and "Knowingly purchasing a couterfeit good", and the latter is further divided into "Knowingly and voluntarily purchasing a counterfeit good" and "Knowingly and forcedly purchasing a counterfeit good". There are different motivations for the two categories.Fourthly, consumers'knowingly buying fake is mainly concentrated on three types of counterfeit, i.e., public-luxury type, public-necessity type and private-luxury type. There are of certain differences in the factors and importance that decide consumers to buy three types of counterfeit products.Fifthly, the overall supervision power is weak.Sixthly, according to the human core split model that Noorderhaven proposed, it is concluded that the reputation mechanism may be the inner impetus of enterprises'resisting counterfeit inherently.Seventhly, from aspects of the inner and external powers, a comprehensive model and countermeasure for treating counterfeit together from inside and outside. are put forward.3. Innovations First, by means of seeking-rent theory, transaction cost theory and etc., the motivation and behavior of enterprise's counterfeiting are analyzed in deepth, and a relational model of the motivation and behavior of enterprise's counterfeiting is built up, which presents the mechanism, path and influence factors between motivation and behavior of enterprise's counterfeiting.Second, consumer counterfeit-purchasing is classified as "Unknowingly purchasing a counterfeit good" and "Knowingly purchasing a couterfeit good", and the latter is further divided into "Knowingly and voluntarily purchasing a counterfeit good" and "Knowingly and forcedly purchasing a counterfeit good". All of them are defined, respectively, and the characteristics of them are analyzed also.Third, counterfeit products are divided into four types according to the product classification that Bearden and Etzel suggested, i.e., public-luxury (PUL), public-necessity (PUN), private-luxury (PRL) and private-necessity (PRN). It is concluded that consumers' purchasing fake is concentrated on types PUL, PUN and PRL.Fourth, through analysis, it is found that there are of certain differences in the factors and importance that decide consumers to purchase counterfeit products of such three types as public-luxury (PUL), public-necessity (PUN) and private-luxury (PRL), and responding intention models of consumer's purchasing fake are also built up. The three models have the strong power to explain the causes and path of rational behavior of consumers'buying fake goods.Fifth, starting from the human core split model that Noorderhaven proposed and through personalizing enterprise, it is shown that company behaves like person, and its inherent disposition has both the opportunistic tendency and the tendency to keep its promise; and then combined with the reputation theory, it is clarified that reputation is probably the inner power for enterprise to inherently refuse counterfeit; and finally, it is indicated that the reputation mechanism can be used to prohibit enterprise from counterfeiting to some extent.Sixth, based on the conclusions above, from aspects of the inner and external powers, a comprehensive model and countermeasure for treating counterfeit together from inside and outside is put forward. The inner power mainly targets at enterprises and consumers, and takes effect by using such forms or systems as industry self-regulation, regulation and credibility education, and safeguarding-rights education, through enhancing the credibility of the limited-rationality person from the reputation mechanism and consumer education; whereas the external power mainly targets at the government and the market regulators, and plays a role by using such systems or forms as laws and regulations, government accountability, personnel accountability of regulatory agency, third-party supervision, social credit, punishment, product quality control and information publishment, starting with eliminating information asymmetry and improving the regulatory regime of such extrinsic factors. Through these internal and external forces working together, counterfeit in market can be treated fundamentally.4. ShortagesFirst, the research of this dissertation does not contain the analysis of dealers' selling fake products in intermediate circulation.Second, the current work does not include the validation for the causal relationship model of enterprise's counterfeiting and for the willingness model of consumer's buying fake goods.The above shortages will serve as the further research in the future.