FSA fights against product piracy

The component manufacturer FSA is gearing up to fight counterfeit products. Raids are being carried out in Taiwan and Italy to take action against counterfeiters. The manufacturer is also calling on specialist retailers and consumers to only purchase products via licensed channels.

FSA informs the trade press and the company website that it has been actively pursuing manufacturers and resellers of counterfeit market products since 2009. Based on research by Taiwan-based FSA manufacturer Tien Hsin Industries, it has already been possible to put a stop to product pirates in Taiwan with the help of the police.

Despite the raids in Taiwan, the European distributor FSA S.L.R in Busagno, Italy, subsequently reported that counterfeit parts were finding their way to consumers in Europe. The counterfeits were offered via eBay or web stores. The Italian customs authority Guardia die Finanzia carried out several raids and confiscated counterfeit material such as wheels, handlebars, stems and seat posts. Their sellers were sentenced to fines and imprisonment for violating trademark law.

In the USA, too, there were increasing reports of consumers buying counterfeit FSA products on eBay, which had already been found in a similar form during police raids in Taiwan and Italy.

FSA is now hoping that the Vero program will have an effect on online purchases via eBay. The program supports the owners of intangible property rights, such as copyrights, trademarks and other industrial property rights, in reporting and removing listings on eBay that infringe these rights.

In order to protect specialist dealers and cyclists from counterfeit products, the manufacturer recommends only using licensed sellers when shopping. With unauthorized channels, especially online marketplaces, there is a high risk of coming across plagiarized material. The product copies are made from inferior material and are insufficiently tested and therefore have major quality and safety deficiencies.

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