The Bavarian Auto Group, sole importer of BMW in Egypt, as well as Toshiba Egypt-El Araby Group, and Imtenan Health Shop announced Saturday that they have joined Egyptian government's anti-counterfeit campaign. As part of the state's role to protect consumers' rights and fix market mechanisms, Egyptian Ministries of Supply and Domestic Trade as well as of Military Production have launched Saturday "The Interactive System for Brand Protection: A Media Campaign Conference". The new interactive anti-counterfeit initiative launched in the event is based on having barcode labels on authentic products to reassure customers that they are not buying fake goods and commodities. Upon the new system, the barcode label shall consist of 14 digits and QR code (abbreviated from Quick Response Code). When the customer buys a product, he/she would send an sms text message for the number written in the QR code at 4567 to instantly receive a reply assuring whether the purchased product is authentic or not. This conference is the first of its kind to be held in Egypt; aiming to create an interactive system to protect brands and market, as well as to ensure the quality of products, targeting an anti-counterfeit market. By applying this system, the Egyptian policymakers hope the market would witness some regulation and less counterfeit occurrences in various industrial products, notably in sectors of food, beverage, car manufacturing, technology, pharmaceuticals, and agricultural pesticides. The most affected by counterfeiting and repacking activities was the agricultural pesticides sector. Over 500 local and international firms have attended Saturday's proceedings.
