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mits [the information],” he explains. “So
that whole technology piece of the puzzle,
I still consider to be on the emerging side.”
The advantage of RFID labels is that
they’re difficult to counterfeit and hard to
detect, according to Reba. The downside is
that the tags are still costly, making them
suitable mainly for high-value goods, he
says.
A WORD OF CAUTION
As cool as these new technologies might
sound, not everyone’s ready to endorse
them. Some packaging and labeling experts
believe they have yet to prove their worth
and remain cautious about recommending
them to clients.
“Emerging technologies are still being
tested and are sometimes really expensive,”
warns Reba, who typically recommends
that his customers use more mature technology. “One-D and 2-D bar codes can be
used without a lot of cost,” he adds.
Eric Carlson, senior manager for
Chainalytics’ packaging optimization consulting service, agrees, saying that newer
technologies still have to prove that they
can be read quickly and easily for authentication purposes. “[In comparison,] bar
coding and the infrastructure behind it is
well established and well integrated into
many enterprise resource planning systems, warehouse management systems, and
other business software,” he says.
BEYOND THE TECHNOLOGY
It’s important to keep in mind that, for all
they can do to protect product integrity,
packaging and labeling are only one front
in the fight against fake goods. Spink of
Michigan State says packaging controls
should be part of a larger holistic program
that starts with an assessment of what type
of counterfeiting is happening and how
fraudsters are getting their product into the
marketplace.
Rodriguez of Digimarc agrees. “The part-
to what their economic objectives are in
trying to clamp down on the problem.”
Four common tricks of the
counterfeit trade
Counterfeiters are creative folks and have come up with a number
of different ways to make a buck off your brand. Here are just a
few examples:
Label swapping: A common type of counterfeiting, this method
involves removing the price tag from an article and replacing it
with a tag for a lower-priced item.
Product divergence: This type of fraud occurs when products
meant for one geographic market or channel (and priced accordingly) are sold in another market at a price lower than you’d
typically find there. For example, a high-end piece of furniture
intended for sale in Mexico ends up at a warehouse club store in
Texas at the price meant for the Mexican market.
Authentic packaging, fake product: Someone at your packaging
provider does an overrun of your packages (such as shoe boxes or
cartons) and sells them to a counterfeiter, who then places fake
goods in them.
Fake packaging, fake product: Fraudsters create a replica of
your packaging, for example using Photoshop, and fill it with fake
product.
