In this Q&A, Sabiene Heindl of MIPI discusses how companies and brands can ensure product security and fight counterfeit goods. She talks about the importance of education not only to consumers, but to internal stakeholders too. She also discusses how to fight piracy and maintaining product security in the age of the internet

1. The ‘Three-Fold Model’ to ensure product security and
fight counterfeit goods
Q&A with Sabiene Heindl, General Manager at the Music
Industry Piracy Investigations (MIPI)
Brand Protection and Anti-Counterfeit Goods 2011
Marketing IQ
How you can ensure the protection of your brand and products in the face of a
global online market?
Sabiene Heindl
In terms of the online world, of course it’s probably right at this point to say
that technology has dramatically changed the scope of black market trade.
This is the sense of course it’s opened up a very exciting opportunity for
legitimate businesses, but its in fact also enabled purveyors of the black
market trade to get to more consumers, and perhaps more importantly, its
allowed them to hide behind the anonymity of the web. The internet for the
music industry has allowed the widespread transmission of a legal content
with IFTI – the International Federation representing record labels, estimating
that 95% of all music downloads are illegal. That creates a number of
significant challenges in terms of brand protection.
Marketing IQ
You mentioned a black market trade, so how can brands develop
relationships with customers to ensure another level of visibility from black
market trade?
Sabiene Heindl
Well, one of the most important ways of getting legitimate products to
consumers is to engage directly with consumers, but it’s also about coming up
with exciting new innovative commercial models in the online space, to
migrate them away from providers that are not doing the right thing.
We also think that it’s absolutely critical that people are engaged in education
programs, and ensuring they are pitched at the right consumers. This refers to
consumers who haven’t made their mind about where to buy products; or are
keeping an open mind; or people who perhaps do not want to do the right

2. thing. Education programs must encourage them to do the right thing and
pointing out the benefits of legitimate products.
Marketing IQ
Now what would be a range of potential strategies a brand could adopt to
achieve the greatest level of brand or product security?
Sabiene Heindl
Well, in terms of the online space, the approach of the music industry has
taken a three-fold strategy. The first one is providing ongoing support for
legitimate commercial model. Obviously, in an environment that is 95% piracy,
this creates a situation where many commercial enterprises don’t have the
levels of confidence that they would otherwise have to create innovative
commercial models. But it’s absolutely imperative that consumers do have
exciting opportunities to legitimately obtain and access data.
The second strategy is to implement appropriate enforcement and monitoring.
In many ways this would of course depend in which jurisdiction you’re
operating in, but in terms of the music industry, we’re actively involved in
monitoring particularly pre-release leaked material and taking that material
down. So it’s about trying to create a level-playing field for our stakeholders.
The third strategy is really around the education. It’s also education to people
within your industry to illustrate the harm that piracy is having upon them. It’s
also important to create advocates within the industry, whether they are
creators, product creators, or people involved in the supply chain. And of
course, its important to branch out and talk to consumers about why it’s
important to respect creativity, why it’s important to support legitimate product
in the marketplace, from the music industry’s perspective. If there isn’t that
level of support for legitimate products, then the reality is that the industry will
not have the return from investment to find and nurture new talents and bring
that to the market, and to consumers.
Sabiene Heindl is the General Manager at MIPI which is the anti-piracy
organisation for the Australian music industry. MIPI represents both record
labels and music publishers and their role is to protect the brand of the music
industry against counterfeiting.
Sabiene Heindl is speaking at the Brand Protection and Anti-Counterfeit
Goods 2011. For more information about this event, to request a
brochure, or to register please visit the event website at www.brand-
protection.com.au. Alternatively, please call 61-02-9229-1000 or email
enquire@iqpc.com.au.
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