Iraqi government take ‘legal measures’ against unlicensed international brands
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Iraqi interior officials have taken “legal actions” against businesses that bear unlicensed international trademarks in a bid to clamp down on infringements of intellectual property, according to a government spokesperson.
The move came after Prime Minister Mohammad Shia’ Al-Sudani ordered the interior ministry to follow up on reports that had put the spotlight on the illegal operation of businesses in the Iraqi capital with international coffee brands, such as Starbucks.
The security forces “acknowledged the existence” of such businesses and took legal action against those establishments, according to Yehia Rasool, the military spokesperson for Al-Sudani.
Rasool called on local investors to obtain “original approvals” from the international brands.
Iraq is one of the leading countries in the region for piracy and infringement of intellectual properties, including broadcasting, food, and coffee as well as pharmaceuticals.
The Qatar-owned broadcasting agency, beIN, loses around $1.2 billion annually due to piracy in the region, and a third of all the internet piracy of its channels is from Iraq, according to a report by The Associated Press recently.
When the famous American coffee house, Starbucks, hired a number of lawyers to file a lawsuit against an owner who operated three unauthorized branches of the café in Baghdad, the legal representatives were threatened by the investor, boasting of ties to militias and powerful political figures, according to the AP.
“They decided it was too risky, and they stopped the case,” an Iraqi legal source told the AP. Amin Makhsusi, the owner, denied that he threatened Starbucks' lawyers.
Following the report, the signs of Starbucks were taken down, ordered by security, Samya Kullab, an AP Iraqi correspondent tweeted on Wednesday.
Our report following up on the recent PM order:
— Samya Kullab | سامية كُلاّب (@samya_kullab) December 28, 2022
Starbucks owner told @AP the stores had taken down the “Starbucks” signs and logos under orders from security officials, but are still selling stock of Starbucks coffee …which they had to “get rid of.”https://t.co/hXkUXnFN2G