Lazada, Shopee, businesses ink MOU for code of practice among online marketplaces

E-commerce platforms Lazada and Shopee, along with global and local brand owners and business associations, on Monday inked a memorandum that would establish a code of practice among online marketplaces.

According to the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHIL), the memorandum of understanding (MOU) will boost efforts against the sale of fake goods online, amid the shift to e-commerce while the quarantines continue to be implemented across the country.

The MOU was signed by brand owners and representatives such as Unilever Philippines Inc., GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare Philippines Inc., GlaxoSmithKline Philippines Inc., Globe Telecom Inc., Castrol Ltd., Solar Pictures Inc., the Philippine Retailers Association, and the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines.

"This MOU establishes a code of practice among online marketplaces, as well as an efficient notice and takedown procedure, to intensify our fight against the sale of counterfeit and pirated goods over the internet," IPOPHIL director general Rowel Barba said in an emailed statement.

"This is especially crucial with counterfeit and piracy complaints and reports surging to a record-high last year," added Barba, who noted that 121 reports and complaints were recorded in 2020, 90% of which were online sales.

Under the agreement, Lazada and Shopee committed to deal with notifications in a "time-efficient and comprehensive manner" and to ensure that their process in validating complaints would not lead to an unreasonable or undue delay in the removal of the offer.

Meanwhile, brand owners committed to use the notice and takedown system established by online platforms and to take commercially reasonable steps to effectively fight counterfeiting at its source.

The MOU is a result of the collaboration of IPOPHIL with the British Embassy under the UK Prosperity Fund ASEAN Economic Reform Programme.

"This e-commerce MOU, which serves as an industry-wide online code of conduct, is a notable culmination of the strong commitment from both government and industry stakeholders to the promotion and protection of IP rights in the country, particularly in the online domain," UK Ambassador to the Philippines Daniel Pruce was quoted as saying.—LDF, GMA News