Discussion Operation Jupiter

Watch INTERPOL Operation Jupiter. Discuss whether you think a culture can be changed so that intellectual property laws would be better protected.

Then respond to the 2 posts below using the guidelines below….

In response to your peers, comment on the challenges International Law Enforcement faces with international property violation operations such as these.

Peer post 1

Unfortunately, there are so many businesses and companies out there that are constantly taking blows and losing profit from people doing these types of things. The video mentioned pirating (Technology, S.C., 2018), and I remember being younger and it was like a common thing to do around my area. I never did it but there were families that I was really close with that did; even their parents. At the time, I was told, “the prices are outrageous and why buy something if you can find it for free?” As a child, that made sense so I never gave much more thought to it. When I got out of high school and started really diving in to my university studies, I started learning that this is actually a crime and why. It is completely unfair to the people who work so hard to create and make these products for someone to come along and take them without any compensation.

Do I think a culture can be changed so that intellectual property laws would be better protected? Absolutely! I feel that any culture can change just like I feel that any person can change. It may not happen right away. It may take quite a bit of time for these laws to be better enforced. The video definitely demonstrated a strong effort to put an end to these types of things and over time, I do feel that more and people will contribute to the enforcement of these laws and really create a change in culture.

Peer post 2

After watching the video, it reminded me of a flea market I used to go to in Derry, NH when I was younger. They would sell fake name brand things like purses, shoes, sunglasses, wallets, and so on. People would flock to these flea markets to buy fake designer bags for cheap. In 2009, the flea markets were raided and 10 people were arrested. The value of the goods confiscated was $60,000, but had the goods not been counterfeit, the value would have been around $450,000 (Parry,2009). When you walk through Chinatown in NYC you have people approaching you left and right asking you if you want to buy bags that are counterfeit. This goes to show how many counterfeit goods are being sold in various places. I think it is very difficult to change culture and it could take years and years for people to adopt a new culture. I think people are not educated in the idea behind these cheap goods, they just see a deal and are happy to support it without realizing how the counterfeit goods are not safe and are being sold illegally.

When the intellectual property laws were made, they were created to protect actual goods and raw material. Todays intellectual property is knowledge and knowledge based industries such as microelectronics, telecommunications, and biotechnology. If these ideas are being re created and sold then it is difficult for these companies to make money and pay their employees a lot of money. (Thurow 1997). I do believe that culture can change to better protect intellectual property laws but it will take a long time.