The falsification of toys costs money and jobs to Spain

Spain hosts a lot of counterfeit toys prodecentes mainly of China, in a 97 percent, and of Hong Kong. The sale of these imitations of the original toys produces annual losses to the toy sector that represent 16.6 percent of the turnover of the Spanish toy companies according to a study conducted by theOR TO ME (Office for the Harmonization of the Internal Market).

The falsification of toys also affects the loss of 13.7 percent of direct jobs in the sector in Spain. In figures, this loss of 16.6 percent in turnover is equivalent to 167 million euros and 13.7 percent of jobs account for some 500 fewer hirings per year.


For this reason, and because the fake toys cost money and jobs in Spain. The Spanish Association of Toy Manufacturers (AEFJ) thanks OHIM, the completion and publication of the study The economic cost of the violation of the rights ofindustrial and intellectual property in games and toys, since it informs the public of the damage caused by this opaque activity for the Spanish toy industry.

Toy counterfeiting also affects employment

The toy sector in the European Union and especially in Spain is made up, for the most part, by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with an average of 10 workers per company. Of this direct employment in Spain, 13.7% is destroyed every year because of the falsifications.


And these losses also affect public income in the European Union, about 37 million euros that are no longer paid as VAT loss, income taxes, social security contributions and corporate taxes.

Counterfeit toys are not safe for children

Some star toys such as dolls, action figures, stuffed animals, board games, toy musical instruments, train models and puzzles have been the subject of this study, which has revealed that, regardless of the economic costs, counterfeits are risky Because toys are not subject to quality controls, so they can cause injuries, accidents and poisoning in children due to handling.

Spain, the fifth EU country in toy forgery

This study has also revealed that Spain is the fifth country in the European Union in impact on toy counterfeits only surpassed by Romania, Bulgaria, Greece and Hungary.


Apart from the economic and labor impact, the falsification of toys is a serious blow to innovation and creativity, as the Spanish toy sector stands out as one of the most innovative. And is that innovation in this sector is very necessary because you have to constantly renew the catalogs, since the toy is a short-cycle product and moves through fashion. It demands a lot of renovation. Currently, approximately 60 percent of the toys of each company are renewed every year.

So much so that Spain remains the second country in the European Union in terms of investment percentage over total turnover and employees dedicated to R & D (Report on the competitiveness of the toy industry, DG Enterprise and Industry, 2013). In addition, the toy sector is ranked No. 8 in the ranking of trademarks among all sectors, and No. 11 in the register of designs.

Measures against toy counterfeiting

However, from OHIM warn that 50 percent of young people between 14 and 24 years considered "smart" to acquire counterfeit products, so AIJU believes it necessary to make campaigns that change this mentality and devote more resources to detect the number of unsafe toys that can be stopped before reaching the Spanish stores. And in addition, other measures such as the approval a few years ago, at the proposal of the Senate of a Royal Decree to strengthen the customs control mechanisms of toys in terms of security, can help curb the forgery of toys.

Marisol Nuevo Espín
Source: Spanish Association of Toy Manufacturers (AEFJ).

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