Sunday November 14, 2010
Consumers get grace period to stop buying fake goods
By ISABELLE LAI
[email protected]
KUALA LUMPUR: Consumers will be given a grace period to stop buying imitation goods before the law is enforced, Deputy Domestic Trade, Co-operatives and Consumerism Minister Datuk Tan Lian Hoe said. To help consumers, she said the ministry had prepared a new Act to enable better monitoring of prices of products.
“This way, we can ensure that companies do not raise the prices of their products unreasonably,’’ she said after launching a sales carnival of original products at the MidValley exhibition centre yesterday. Tan also commended several distribution companies which were in talks with the ministry to price their CDs and DVDs below RM10. She urged consumers to cooperate with the ministry’s initiative as the purchase of imitation goods affected the country’s earnings.
“We won’t compromise on this matter as we want a healthy market for our economy to thrive. However, we will do our best to educate consumers first, so that they realise the consequences of their actions,” she added. She said the ministry had embarked on a roadshow to educate primary and secondary schoolchildren on how to differentiate between original and fake products.
Exhibitors at the carnival expressed concern over consumers choosing to buy fake goods. “People who use imitation sports attire and equipment put themselves at risk of injury as they don’t incorporate the same benefits that original products do,” said Allyson Goh, whose booth displayed different brands of sports products.
Computer software business development manager Alex Ng said customers would not benefit from warranties if they purchased pirated software. “They don’t have customer support to call or service centres to go to. In the end, they end up paying more to fix the problem,” he said.
The Karnival Jualan Ori ends today.
