50 most influential people in IP 2022: MIP recognises an investigation lead in the Spanish National Police
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50 most influential people in IP 2022: MIP recognises an investigation lead in the Spanish National Police

The investigation lead at the Spanish National Police asked to remain anonymous

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Counterfeiting techniques are rapidly evolving in the digital age, putting pressure on the authorities to keep up.

In Spain, at least, they’ve shown they’re up to the job.

In October, Managing IP reported on how the anti-piracy unit of the Spanish National Police busted a counterfeiting ring that was using so-called ‘hidden links’ to flog fake merchandise.

The counterfeit scheme involved social media adverts for counterfeit products. Links would take consumers to listings of entirely different unbranded and non-counterfeit infringing products on e-commerce websites.

After the buyers made their purchases, they received the originally advertised counterfeits they saw on social media.

Police made six arrests after a lengthy operation, which was one of the first investigations of its kind on this latest type of counterfeiting scheme.

The authorities uncovered three social media groups, each with more than 40,000 members and more than 30 different links to e-commerce websites selling thousands of counterfeit luxury brands.

The operation was a testament to the challenge facing police when it came to the changing face of counterfeiting, the head of the investigation told Managing IP in October.

She was speaking on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of her work.

“It is a job that combines police investigation on networks and the internet with a traditional police investigation, such as requests for warrants and surveillance,” she said.

“The collaboration and involvement on the part of the Spanish justice system has been exemplary, especially considering the difficulty of the investigation,” she added.

Profiles for the 50 most influential people in IP 2022
View profiles

The list is in five categories, which you can navigate by selecting the appropriate section below.

19 Industry leaders
10 Public officials
9 IP authorities
7 Judges
5 Notable individuals
 
Kasim Alfalahi is CEO at Avanci in the US
Shannon Thyme Klinger is chief legal officer at Moderna in the US
Jim Sullivan is a director at Shazam Productions in the UK
Jack Randles is head of legal at Manolo Blahnik in the UK
Audrey Lee is general counsel at Starz Entertainment in the US
Robert Devonshire is a partner at MML Capital in the UK
Scott Frank is CEO of IP at AT&T in the US
Stephen Wurth and John Scott are legal counsel at Qualcomm in the US
Joyce Ang is senior vice president for IPR protection at Lazada in Singapore
Daniel Zohny is head of IP at FIFA in Switzerland
Craig Wright is a computer scientist in Australia
Niall Trainor is senior director of brand protection at eOne in the UK
Juliette Rouilloux-Sicre is vice president of legal and intellectual property at Thales in France
Ben Horowitz and Marc Andreessen are founders at Andreessen Horowitz in the US
Nader Pazirandeh is president at Unicolors in the US
Beat Weibel is chief IP counsel at Siemens in Germany
Mattia Fogliacco is president of Sisvel International in Luxembourg
Clemens Heusch is global head of dispute resolution at Nokia in Germany
René Claude Metomo is the president of the Association of Penja Pepper Producers in Cameroon
 
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is the director general of the World Trade Organization in Switzerland
Jacob Rees-Mogg is the former secretary of state for business, energy and industrial strategy in the UK
Edwin Tong is the second minister for law in the Singapore government
Kerstin Jorna is director general of DG Grow at the European Commission in Belgium
Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan is the former president of the United Arab Emirates
Vladimir Putin is president of Russia
Thom Tillis is a senator for North Carolina at the US Congress
Patrick Leahy is a senator for Vermont at the US Congress
 
Alexander Ramsay is former chair of the UPC Administrative Committee in Sweden
Insil Lee is the commissioner at KIPO in South Korea
Christian Archambeau is executive director at the EUIPO in Spain
Kathi Vidal is the director of the USPTO and under secretary of commerce for IP in the US government
Shira Perlmutter is register of copyrights at the US Copyright Office
Shen Changyu is the commissioner of the CNIPA in China
Konstantinos Georgaras is CEO of the Canadian Intellectual Property Office
António Campinos is president of the EPO in Germany
Tim Moss is former CEO of the UKIPO
 
Wang Jiangqiao is a judge at the Hangzhou Internet Court in China
Colm Connolly is the chief judge at the District Court for the District of Delaware in the US
Suzanne Barnett was the interim chief judge at the Copyright Royalty Board in the US
Prathiba Singh is a judge at the Delhi High Court in India
Len Stark is a judge at the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in the US
Orlando Garcia is the chief judge at the District Court for the Western District of Texas in the US
Klaus Grabinski is president of the UPC Court of Appeal in Germany
 
Amber Kotrri is the founder of House of Zana in the UK
Lynn Goldsmith is a celebrity photographer in the US
Ankit Sahni is the owner of the RAGHAV Artificial Intelligence Painting App in India
Ed Sheeran is a pop star in the UK
Taras Kulbaba is a partner at Bukovnik & Kulbaba IP Guardians in Belgium
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