[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 222 (Tuesday, November 17, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73264-73266]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-25326]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

United States Patent and Trademark Office

[Docket No. PTO-C-2020-0044]


Development of a National Consumer Awareness Campaign on 
Combating the Trafficking in Counterfeit and Pirated Products

AGENCY: United States Patent and Trademark Office, Commerce.

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ACTION: Request for comments.

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SUMMARY: On January 24, 2020, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) 
released its Report to the President of the United States titled 
``Combating Trafficking in Counterfeit and Pirated Goods'' (DHS 
Report). The report was prepared in response to the April 3, 2019, 
Presidential Memorandum titled ``Memorandum on Combating Trafficking in 
Counterfeit and Pirated Goods'' (Presidential Memorandum). Among the 
action items identified in the DHS Report was action 11, titled 
``Establish a National Consumer Awareness Campaign.'' To start 
implementation of this action item, the United States Patent and 
Trademark Office (USPTO) is seeking information from stakeholders, 
including, but not limited to, intellectual property rights holders, 
online third-party marketplaces, third-party intermediaries, and other 
private sector stakeholders, on the development of a National Consumer 
Awareness Campaign on Combating the Trafficking in Counterfeit and 
Pirated Products as a public-private partnership.

DATES: Comments must be received by 5 p.m. ET on January 4, 2021.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments and responses to the questions below 
by one of the following methods:
    (a) Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic comments via the 
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov (at the 
homepage, enter ``PTO-T-2020-0044'' in the ``Search'' box, click the 
``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter or 
attach your comments). The materials in the docket will not be edited 
to remove identifying or contact information, and the USPTO cautions 
against including any information in an electronic submission that the 
submitter does not want publicly disclosed. Attachments to electronic 
comments will be accepted in Microsoft Word or Excel or Adobe PDF 
formats only. Comments containing references to studies, research, and 
other empirical data that are not widely published should include 
copies of the referenced materials. Please do not submit additional 
materials. If you want to submit a comment with business confidential 
information that you do not wish to be made public, submit the comment 
as a written/paper submission in the manner detailed below.
    (b) Written/Paper Submissions: Send all written/paper submissions 
to: United States Patent and Trademark Office, Mail Stop OPIA, P.O. Box 
1450, Alexandria, Virginia 22314. Submission packaging should clearly 
indicate that materials are responsive to Docket No. PTO-T-2020-0044, 
Office of Policy and International Affairs, Comment Request; 
Development of a National Consumer Awareness Campaign on Combating the 
Trafficking in Counterfeit and Pirated Products.
    Submissions of Business Confidential Information: Any submissions 
containing business confidential information must be delivered in a 
sealed envelope marked ``confidential treatment requested'' to the 
address listed above. Submitters should provide an index listing the 
document(s) or information they would like the Department of Commerce 
to withhold. The index should include information such as numbers used 
to identify the relevant document(s) or information, document title and 
description, and relevant page numbers and/or section numbers within a 
document. Submitters should provide a statement explaining their 
grounds for objecting to the disclosure of the information to the 
public as well. The USPTO also requests that submitters of business 
confidential information include a non-confidential version (either 
redacted or summarized) of those confidential submissions that will be 
available for public viewing and posted on https://www.regulations.gov. 
In the event that the submitter cannot provide a non-confidential 
version of its submission, the USPTO requests that the submitter post a 
notice in the docket stating that it has provided the USPTO with 
business confidential information. Should a submitter fail to either 
docket a non-confidential version of its submission or post a notice 
that business confidential information has been provided, the USPTO 
will note the receipt of the submission on the docket with the 
submitter's organization or name (to the degree permitted by law) and 
the date of submission.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Charisma Hampton, USPTO, Office of 
Policy and International Affairs, at [email protected]. Please 
direct media inquiries to the Office of the Chief Communications 
Officer, USPTO, at 571-272-8400.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The DHS Report describes how the rapid 
growth of e-commerce platforms, ``further catalyzed by online third-
party marketplaces connected to the platforms, has revolutionized the 
way products are bought and sold.'' \1\ However, this overall growth 
``has facilitated online trafficking in counterfeit and pirated 
goods.'' \2\ American consumers shopping on e-commerce platforms now 
face a greater risk of purchasing counterfeits, including goods that 
endanger the health and safety of unsuspecting consumers.
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    \1\ DHS Report at 7, available at https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/20_0124_plcy_counterfeit-pirated-goods-report_01.pdf.
    \2\ DHS Report at 7. Other sections of the DHS Report address 
both trademark counterfeiting and copyright piracy, but action 9, 
the subject of this Federal Register notice, is limited to trademark 
counterfeits.
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    Given the critical role that consumers can play in the battle 
against online counterfeiting, the DHS Report recommends the 
development of a national public-private awareness campaign to educate 
consumers regarding the risks of counterfeit and pirated goods, as well 
as the various ways consumers can spot counterfeit products.\3\
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    \3\ See DHS Report at 33.
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    The development of the DHS Report benefitted from extensive 
interagency discussions that included DHS, the Department of Justice, 
the Office of the United States Trade Representative, the Department of 
Commerce the Food and Drug Administration, the Office of the 
Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator, the Department of State, 
and also outreach to, and comments from, numerous private sector 
stakeholders. The USPTO, the International Trade Administration of the 
Department of Commerce, and many other government agencies work to 
combat counterfeit goods.
    Request for Information:
    The USPTO requests information from interested stakeholders, 
including, but not limited to, intellectual property rights holders 
affected by the sale of counterfeit goods offered through e-commerce 
platforms, online third-party marketplaces, third-party intermediaries, 
other entities with experience in public-private awareness campaigns, 
and applicable government agencies.
    Respondents may address any, all, or none of the following topics 
and may address additional related issues that have implications for 
establishing a national consumer awareness campaign designed to educate 
consumers on the direct and indirect costs and risks of counterfeit and 
pirated goods. Please identify, where possible, the subject(s) your 
comments are intended to address.
    Respondents may organize their submissions in any manner. Reminder: 
Respondents have the burden to request that any information contained 
in a submission be treated as business confidential information and 
must certify that such information is business confidential and would 
not customarily

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be released to the public by the submitter. Business confidential 
information must be clearly designated as such and provided only by 
mail carrier as described above.
    The USPTO welcomes all input relevant to the development of the 
guidelines, action plans, strategies, and best practices for 
establishing a public-private national consumer awareness campaign 
designed to educate consumers on the direct and indirect costs and 
risks of counterfeit and pirated goods. The USPTO specifically seeks 
the following types of information utilized, or under development, by 
any public or private entity:
    (1) Educational curricula identifying direct and indirect harms 
associated with sales of counterfeit and pirated products.
    (2) Strategies to ensure consumers make informed purchasing 
decisions.
    (3) Public service advertisements (PSAs) targeted to social media 
users.
    (4) Methods to identify false and misleading information on e-
commerce pages.
    (5) Alerts for high-risk products and automated warnings describing 
health impacts.
    (6) ``Red flag'' indicators for suspicious listings on e-commerce 
platforms.
    (7) Incentives to empower consumers to participate in monitoring, 
detecting, and informing platforms and users of counterfeits.

    Dated: November 7, 2020.
Andrei Iancu,
Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of 
the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
[FR Doc. 2020-25326 Filed 11-16-20; 8:45 am]
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