NCIPR upholds IP rights push in Greenhills amid USTR flagging

The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL), the vice chair of the inter-agency National Committee on Intellectual Property Rights (NCIPR), said it will maintain vigilance in enforcing intellectual property rights at Greenhills Shopping Center amid the latter’s inclusion on the 2025 Notorious Markets List of the United States Trade Representative (USTR).

The USTR’s list is a report listing physical markets worldwide believed to be engaged in the trade of counterfeit goods and copyright piracy, which includes GSC.

Efforts to do better acknowledged

However, the recent report also recognized NCIPR’s efforts to do better.

“The NCIPR continues to enforce intellectual property (IP) rights in GSC in coordination with brand owners and in cooperation with the GSC management through its ‘three-strike rule’, which may lead to suspension or blacklisting,” said IPOPHL acting director general Nathaniel Arevalo.

“Over the years, IPOPHL, as vice chair of the NCIPR, has also sustained engagement with traders through dialogues and joint capacity-building activities with the Department of Trade and Industry, chair of the NCIPR, toward shifting to legitimate businesses,” he added.

Notorious market

GSC remains the only physical market in the Philippines cited for intellectual property violations in the 2025 Review of Notorious Markets for Counterfeiting and Piracy released by the USTR.

In its latest report issued 3 March, the USTR said the San Juan City mall continues to be associated with the sale of counterfeit and pirated goods, despite steps taken by authorities and mall management to address the problem.

“Law enforcement authorities, in collaboration with right holders, have conducted raids at the mall, and the management at Greenhills Shopping Center has applied a three-strikes rule to take action against counterfeit sellers,” the USTR noted.

“The management reports that almost 300 vendor stalls have been removed over the past year for selling counterfeit goods.”

Arevalo said the “NCIPR is working with right holders and shopping center management to implement a transition program to transform Greenhills Shopping Center into a high-end mall with legitimate sellers.”

NCIPR Help Desk

“The NCIPR Help Desk to be manned by personnel from NCIPR member agencies will be launched soon. This will serve not only as a frontline for enforcement actions but also as a point of guidance for tenants to explain the law and the risks of selling counterfeit goods and to help them with the information they need to steer them away from selling counterfeit goods toward a legitimate and more sustainable business model,” he said.

Arevalo maintained that the goal of the NCIPR is not merely removal from any watch list but true market transformation, where GSC will be known as a legitimate retail center known for quality and trust.

However, he stressed that such a transformation will not happen overnight, but with sustained cooperation, consistent enforcement, and accountable governance policies institutionalized, it is achievable.

“Enforcement of IP rights needs not just a whole-of-government effort, but also a whole-of-society approach. IPOPHL and the NCIPR remain committed to steady, practical progress, with clear actions and visible results expected in the months ahead,” according to Arevalo.