Seizures and discoveries include in the UK, the impounding and subsequent destruction of almost 8000 counterfeit designer jackets… Also in the UK, a large number of pirated DVDs and CDs have been seized at a car boot sale… In the US, thousands of counterfeit luxury goods were seized at a Mall… A huge counterfeit cigarette factory has been closed down in the Czech Republic… Similarly in South Africa, a large number of counterfeit cigarettes have been found in three vehicles… Tens of thousands of pirated DVDs have been seized during raids in Russia and Malaysia.

Cases and outcomes include two very similar judgements in France and the UK, regarding lawsuits brought by cosmetics firm L’Oreal SA against EBay Inc., for allowing counterfeit L’Oreal products to be sold on the auction site. Both judgments ruled that EBay is not liable for trademark infringement caused by users of its website… In the US, a re-trial looks likely on the only file sharing case to have gone to a jury, after there was no settlement made between the Recording Industry Association of America and the accused; Jammie Thomas... A man in the UK has been charged with attempting to smuggle more than 21 million counterfeit cigarettes into the country.

Studies and reports out include the release of the Sixth Annual BSA and IDC Global Software piracy study, finding that although piracy in many countries was lower in 2008, overall global piracy levels have gone up… A new report by the International Policy Network found that fake tuberculosis and malaria drugs alone are estimated to kill 700,000 people a year.