Museum of Counterfeit Goods

The Tilleke & Gibbins Museum of Counterfeit Goods is a museum focused on intellectual property infringement in Yan Nawa District, Bangkok, Thailand. It is operated by Tilleke & Gibbins, a law firm with offices in Thailand and Vietnam recognized as having one of the top intellectual property practices in Southeast Asia.[1] Situated in the firm’s Bangkok office at the 26th floor of Supalai Grand Tower, the museum is home to a variety of counterfeit and pirated goods that the firm has accumulated in its work.[2]

The museum receives over a thousand visitors each year. Many local and international newspapers and magazines have also published articles on the Tilleke & Gibbins museum, such as The Christian Science Monitor and TIME magazine.[3][4]

Museum of Counterfeit Goods

Purpose

A walk down a city street or through a busy market provides a reminder that Bangkok deserves its reputation as one of the world’s premiere marketplaces for counterfeit goods.[5] Consumers sometimes mistakenly view illegal trade in counterfeit products as a “victimless crime”.[6][7]

Tilleke & Gibbins founded the museum and raise awareness regarding counterfeiting in Thailand and other intellectual property issues. The Tilleke & Gibbins Museum of Counterfeit Goods is described as "one of the firm’s key corporate social responsibility programs".[8]

The museum shows problems Thailand is facing when tackling forgery, and teaches visitors to spot fake products by showing counterfeit goods alongside their genuine counterparts.[9]

Students visit Museum of Counterfeit Goods


Collection

The Tilleke & Gibbins Museum of Counterfeit Goods consists of more than 4,000 goods that infringe trademarks, patents, and copyrights. One of the largest of its kind in the world, the museum is home to a collection of 14 broad categories of goods, including clothing, footwear, watches and eyewear, accessories, cosmetics and perfumes, food and household products, drugs, alcohol and cigarettes, copyright works, stationery and office supplies, automotive parts, tools, electrical devices, and miscellaneous products.[10] According to CNN, the museum has "an eye-opening display that shows just how much is counterfeited, how far crooks will go to manufacture fake products, and the very real dangers that the industry creates".[11]

Other unexpected couterfeited goods are shown, such as automotive accessories, bearings, residual-current devices, pencils, glue, and food products.[12]

Media visits Museum of Counterfeit Goods

References

  1. ↑ "Managing Intellectual Property". Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  2. ↑ "Time and Trademark Infringement". Asia Africa Intelligence Wire (Bangkok Post). Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  3. ↑ Krausz, Tibor. "Thailand: Fakery, enshrined". The Christian Science Monitor. The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  4. ↑ Jones, Gary (2009-06-08). "Knock It Off: A Thai Museum for Counterfeit Goods". Time World (Time). Retrieved 2013-02-21.
  5. ↑ Jorgensen, Greg. "Faking it at Bangkok's Museum of Counterfeit Goods". CNN Travel (CNN). Retrieved 2013-02-21.
  6. ↑ Bukszpan, Daniel. "Counterfeiting: Many Risks and Many Victims". CNBC. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  7. ↑ "What are the Economic and Social Consequences of Counterfeiting and Piracy?". World Intellectual Property Organization. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  8. ↑ "Community Service". Tilleke & Gibbins. Tilleke & Gibbins. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
  9. ↑ "Museum of Counterfeit Goods in Bangkok: Fighting Fakes in Bangkok". Bangkok Magazine. Bangkok Magazine. Retrieved 2013-02-21.
  10. ↑ "Museum of Counterfeit Goods". Tilleke & Gibbins. Tilleke & Gibbins. Retrieved 2013-02-21.
  11. ↑ Jorgensen, Greg. "Faking it at Bangkok's Museum of Counterfeit Goods". CNN Travel (CNN Travel). Retrieved 2013-02-21.
  12. ↑ Christensen, Stefan. "Kopiornas Baksida". Destination Asien. Destination Asien. Retrieved 2013-02-21.

Coordinates: 13°40′58″N 100°32′50″E / 13.682809°N 100.547293°E