Development of a National Consumer Awareness Campaign on Combating the Trafficking in Counterfeit and Pirated Products
| Published date | 10 February 2021 |
| Citation | 86 FR 8894 |
| Record Number | 2021-02724 |
| Section | Notices |
| Court | Commerce Department,Patent And Trademark Office |
Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 26 (Wednesday, February 10, 2021)
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 26 (Wednesday, February 10, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8894-8895]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-02724]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
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: The United States Patent and Trademark Office, Department of
Commerce.
ACTION: Request for comments; reopening of comment period.
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SUMMARY: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO or
Office) published a request for comments in the Federal Register on
November 17, 2020, seeking information from stakeholders, including,
but not limited to, intellectual property rights holders, online third-
party marketplaces, third-party intermediaries, other private sector
stakeholders, other entities with experience in public-private
awareness campaigns, and applicable government agencies on the
``Development of a National Consumer Awareness Campaign on Combating
the Trafficking in Counterfeit and Pirated Products'' as a public-
private partnership. Through this notice, the USPTO is reopening the
period for public comment until March 12, 2021.
DATES: Comment date: Written comments must be received on or before
March 12, 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 www.regulations.gov (at the homepage,
enter ``PTO-C-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-C-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 USPTO 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 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.
Request for Information: On November 17, 2020, the USPTO published
a notice in the Federal Register requesting public input on the
establishment of a national consumer awareness campaign designed to
educate consumers on the direct and indirect costs and risks of
counterfeit and pirated goods. See Request for Comments on the
Development of a National Consumer Awareness Campaign on Combating the
Trafficking in Counterfeit and Pirated Products, 85 FR 73264 (Nov. 17,
2020). In that notice, the USPTO requested 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 private sector stakeholders, other entities
with experience in public-private awareness campaigns, and applicable
government agencies, in accordance with the call to action in the
Department of Homeland Security's January 24, 2020, Report to the
President of the United States titled ``Combating Trafficking in
Counterfeit and Pirated Goods.''
To assist in gathering public input, the USPTO published questions
and sought all input relevant to the development of 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.
Specifically, in that earlier notice, the USPTO sought the
following types of information utilized or under
[[Page 8895]]
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 announcements 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
The notice requested public comments on or before January 4, 2021.
Through this notice, the USPTO is reopening the period for public
comment until March 12, 2021, to give interested members of the public
additional time to submit comments and provide information on the same
topics. All other information and instructions to commenters provided
in the November 17, 2020, notice remain unchanged. Previously submitted
comments do not need to be resubmitted.
Andrew Hirshfeld,
Commissioner for Patents, Performing the Functions and Duties of the
Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of
the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
[FR Doc. 2021-02724 Filed 2-9-21; 8:45 am]
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