Kumamoto Prefecture announced that Chinese authorities have ordered the shutdown of a manufacturer of fake Kumamon goods. The Kumamon pirate was producing and selling 20,000 units of fake Kumamon merchandise. According to rules set down by Kumamoto Prefecture, only licensed vendors located in Kumamoto Prefecture can sell official goods, but production is often outsourced to Chinese companies. Kumamoto Prefecture hired a lawyer in Oct. 2014 to conduct a so-called cyber patrol, and last March a factory in Zhejiang Province was confirmed to be making pirated Kumamon goods. With the rise of Kumamon’s popularity in China, it seems that manufacturing techniques may have been leaked. The Prefecture believes this is merely the tip of the iceberg. Source: Asahi Shimbun, 1/22
(Photo for illustrative purposes only)
