Fake Barbies Worth Thousands Of Dollars Seized At Border Crossing
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers working at the El Paso port of entry have seized thousands of counterfeit Barbie doll toys in the last few days. The toys were contained in two commercial shipments that were being exported from the U.S. to Mexico.
?The importers paid more than $30,000 for these items however the domestic value of this shipment could easily be eight to 10 times that total,? said Ana Hinojosa, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Director of Field Operations in El Paso. ?Part of the CBP mission includes enforcing trade laws. We devote substantial resources to target, intercept, detain, seize and forfeit shipments of goods that violate these laws.?
On December 17, CBP officers at the Ysleta international crossing cargo export facility seized 377 cartons that contained counterfeit Barbie toys. The shipment originally arrived at the port November 1 and was detained because of concerns about the authenticity of the toys in the shipment. CBP officers and import specialists contacted the Mattel company and were able to determine that the goods were unauthorized and illegally counterfeited copies of genuine Barbie goods. The shipment included regular sized dolls, 28-inch and 32-inch Barbie dolls, styling heads of various sizes, Barbie family play sets, and Barbie mermaids. The domestic value of the items was $24,939.
On December 18, CBP officers at the Ysleta international crossing cargo export facility seized 80 cartons that contained counterfeit Barbie toys. The shipment originally arrived at the port November 18 and was detained because of concerns about the authenticity of the toys in the shipment. CBP officers and import specialists contacted the Mattel company and were able to determine that the goods were unauthorized and illegally counterfeited copies of genuine Barbie goods. The shipment included 32-inch Barbie dolls, and Barbie with furniture and Barbie with accessories sets. The domestic value of these goods was $5,322.
?The items in questions did not bear the Barbie name or trademark but their overall appearance and packaging was confusingly similar to the genuine item and therefore constituted trademark infringement,? said Hinojosa.
In fiscal year 2009, 14,841 seizures of counterfeit and pirated goods with a total domestic value of $260.7 million were intercepted at U.S. ports of entry. The total domestic value of counterfeit products seized presenting potential safety or security risks seized was $32 million. Pharmaceuticals were the top product in this category
China continues to be the number one source country for counterfeit and pirated goods seized in fiscal year 2009, accounting for 79 percent or $204.7 million of the total seizure value. For the fourth year in a row, footwear was the top product seized, accounting for 38 percent of the entire domestic value of infringing goods. More information on CBP intellectual property rights enforcement activity can be found at: http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/trade/priority_trade/ipr/pubs/seizure/
