PART C – ISSUES FACING BUSINESSES THAT TRADE

GLOBALLY

AS 91381 (3.3)Apply business knowledge to address a complex problem in a given global business context

EXPLOITATION OF ETHNO-BOTANIC RESOURCES

Ethno-botanic resources are resources or products that are derived from plants and natural sources. How can these be exploited?

O Overuse/plunderingO Genetic modificationO Use of non-sustainable practicesO Poisoning and the use of toxic materialsO Excess use of materials within

productionO Damage to existing natural habitats

affecting other wildlife, resources and eco-systems

O Lack of respect for laws, boundaries, licences etc

O Non-adherence to the tikanga of the tangata whenua

The following large businesses are commited to the protection of ethno-botanical resources.

SEALORD FISHERIES

O Anti-plunderingO Adhere to Quota Management System set

up by NZ governmentO Use sustainable farming methodsO Has the philosophy: “carefully monitor

health of fisheries and act sustainably’O Work to fullest extent of the lawO Less C02 used than land-based farming

methodsO Active approach to sustainabilityO Work with scientists to monitor fish stocksO Fishing industry invests $20m into

research on sustainable practices

THE BODY SHOP

O Committed to reducing their impact on the environmentO Try to find innovative solutions to environmental

problemsO Use green energy and have policies on reducing energy

useO Publish their performance against their own targets

regularly (ethical audits) and engage with stakeholdersO Clear communication (transparency) with stakeholdersO 500 stores fun on green energyO Have schemes to create/maintain resources that

support eco-systems, e.g. beehivesO Try to source all wood products from sustainably grown

forests

BREACH OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AGREEMENTS

“Breaching” an agreement means not honouring the agreement or breaking it. It is an act of dishonesty and non-compliance.

In today’s highly-globalised society, operating in offshore markets is almost a necessity in order to grow a business. Protecting intellectual property (IP) is one of the key issues faced by a New Zealand business seeking to expand overseas. There are perceived dangers in releasing IP into other markets, but these dangers can be offset by the use of appropriate IP safeguards. Some of these safeguards are as follows.

O Original WorksOriginal creations are automatically protected by copyright, which grants exclusive protection to the owner of the copyright. All original works should be marked with the copyright symbol ©, the name of the copyright owner and the year that the work was created. In New Zealand, there is no copyright registration system. However, some overseas jurisdictions allow registration of copyright ownership.

O BrandingTrade marks protect branding ~ symbols, marks, brands or logos used to distinguish goods or services. A registered trade mark gives the holder the exclusive right to use that trade mark in relation to specified goods and/or services. Registration of a company generally does not grant the registrant any IP rights in the company name, and does not constitute registration of a trade mark. Businesses should plan to register their trade mark in each market that they plan to enter. A failure to do so could result in a business being unable to use its own brand name in key offshore markets!

O Confidentiality agreementsIn order to engage with other parties in overseas markets, businesses will inevitably be required to disclose confidential and/or commercially sensitive information. This information must be protected from unauthorised use or disclosure. In the absence of any agreement between the parties, common law obligations of confidentiality will apply in commonwealth countries and most developed countries. The best approach for ensuring that confidential information is legally protected is to have the recipient sign a confidentiality agreement and ensure that the confidentiality agreement is not superseded by any subsequent contracts with the recipient.

Why would IP be breached?

Despite the IP owner doing all they can to legally protect themselves against illegal use of their brand or material, their IP may be used by other businesses, inadvertently (by accident) or deliberately to try to benefit from the branding. An unscrupulous business deliberately trying to leverage (benefit) from using the IP belonging to another business would do so for various reasons, including saving money on employing branding designers. The business breaching the IP may very slightly modify the logo or design but hope that consumers mistake their product for the original.

The effects of breaching IP

For the customer:O Possible opportunity to buy product

for lower price as it is not the “real deal”

O Brand confusion ~ customer may believe they are buying the “real deal”

For the IP owner:O Loss of sales revenueO Compromised reputation if imposter

sells inferior product or service

For the business stealing the IP (the imposter):O Increase in sales by “piggybacking”

on brand of the IP ownerO Risk of legal action if IP owner

discovers the breach