HP Continues to Bust Counterfeit Products in Africa

Hewlett-Packard recently rolled out a three-pronged strategy to fight the counterfeiting of its products in Africa. That strategy consists of: awareness, packaging, and enforcement. HP says 9 million units of counterfeit HP products have been confiscated globally in recent years as a result of enforcement activities, including the most recent seizure in November 2012, of 20,000 counterfeit HP toner printer cartridges, by local officials at the Tema Harbour in Ghana.

At an anti-counterfeiting briefing in Accra, Ghana, HP’s ACF Marketing Program Manager, Ms. Tina Rose, said counterfeiting is a great challenge to HP because it destroys HP’s business standards and practices. HP was compelled to raise its awareness and come up with solutions to tackle the problem.

“The war against counterfeiters is constantly evolving,” Ms. Rose explained, “and we must remain steadfast in our resolve, which is why we always look for new ways to tackle counterfeiting in our various markets across the world.”

According to Tina Rose, HP’s inkjet and laser print cartridges now feature sophisticated holographic properties. Moreover, they have incorporated a new Quick Response (QR) code that customers can easily validate using a web-enabled smartphone.

Tolulope Lawani, PPS Marketing Manager for HP in West Africa, noted, “HP would ensure that its partners and customers receive only authentic supplies by making its printer cartridges difficult to produce, distribute and counterfeit”.