United against Swissness abuse
The Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IPI) took action in 280 cases of Swissness abuse last year. In cases of misuse of the Swiss coat of arms, the IPI takes consistent action and has these goods destroyed at customs. In order to better represent the interests of the Swiss economy in the fight against Swissness freeloaders abroad, private and state actors have joined forces in a new association.
Since 1 January 2017, legal rules have applied to products and services that producers wish to advertise with Swissness, for example with a Swiss cross or "Swiss Made". These rules are intended to protect the "Swiss" brand from misuse and to secure an important competitive advantage for companies producing in Switzerland in the long term. Swissness legislation brings in CHF 1.4 billion a year for the Swiss economy. Free riders at home and abroad also want to profit from this.
After a decline in previous years, the number of Swissness abuse cases in Switzerland rose to a new peak in 2020. The IPI became active in 280 cases. It is receiving an increasing number of pertinent tips from the public, which regards Swissness as a collective good and is disturbed when the Swiss cross is used wrongly.
Customs destroys goods with CH emblem
The Swiss coat of arms is reserved by law solely for the Swiss Confederation and - unlike the Swiss cross - may not be used for commercial purposes. Customs confiscates goods bearing the Swiss coat of arms and destroys them at the request of the IPI. Since the introduction of the Swissness legislation, this procedure has led to the destruction of ten import shipments. In cooperation with the Federal Customs Administration, corresponding abuses in Switzerland are thus effectively curbed.
Swissness Enforcement Association - Strong defence alliance for the Swiss brand
What works well at home must be even better abroad. There, the success of Swissness law enforcement requires combined forces. This is confirmed by a study published by the Federal Council in December 2020. This is because Swiss laws only apply to Switzerland. Exporters of goods, foodstuffs and services cannot benefit from the "Swissness bonus" abroad if Swiss indications of source are also used there by unauthorised persons.
For years, individual industry associations, companies and the IPI have been fighting individually against the misuse of the Swiss cross and coat of arms. In order to monitor the markets globally and to jointly build up know-how on country-specific instruments for combating misuse, the most important players in the legal enforcement of Swissness have founded the Swissness Enforcement Association. The collective good of Swissness can only be preserved if everyone is committed to it. This is the view of the authors of the study on the legal enforcement of Swissness in Switzerland and abroad. The public-private partnership Swissness Enforcement meets with broad approval among the Swissness users surveyed.
Press release Federal Institute of Intellectual Property
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