Vietnam steps up crackdown on intellectual property infringement to preserve innovation

For example, a movie may have just been released, only to quickly appear on multiple piracy websites.

Software is cracked and distributed openly as a ‘free resource.’

A brand that took years to develop is counterfeited and sold across e-commerce platforms within weeks.

What is most worrying is no longer the individual incidents themselves, but the way society is gradually accepting them as a normal part of the digital environment.

When intellectual property infringement is treated as merely an ‘acceptable operating cost,’ the market starts sending a dangerous signal: copying is more profitable than innovation.

This is why the Vietnamese prime minister’s Official Dispatch No. 38. deserves attention.

The dispatch directs intensified nationwide efforts to prevent and strictly handle counterfeit goods and copyright violations, particularly during a peak enforcement period from May 7 to 30.

More importantly, it reflects a shift in how the issue is being viewed at the level of national governance.

Intellectual property is no longer seen simply as a commercial dispute between businesses.

Increasingly, it is being linked directly to economic security, the quality of growth, and national competitiveness in the digital economy.

In the digital landscape, the greatest share of corporate value lies in intangible assets such as data, software, brands, and technology.

If these assets are not adequately protected, the economy risks erosion at its most valuable layer.

A country may develop infrastructure rapidly, but it will struggle to advance if creators no longer believe their intellectual contributions are genuinely safeguarded.

It is concerned that infringement is no longer isolated or small-scale.

It is evolving into entire ‘digital ecosystems of violations,’ where pirate websites, counterfeit live-stream sales, online advertising, digital payment systems, and platform-based commerce operate together in an integrated chain of profit.

In reality, part of the digital economy now survives on revenue generated from infringing content.

The most dangerous thing is that many business models in cyberspace can earn money faster by copying the ideas of others than by creating original value themselves.

When web traffic, advertising revenue, and e-commerce transactions all depend on infringing content, the issue ceases to be about the behavior of individual offenders.

It becomes a question of market structure and the effectiveness of law enforcement.

For years, Vietnam has repeatedly pledged to combat counterfeit goods and intellectual property infringement, yet the problem remains persistent and increasingly complex.

The core obstacle is simple: the profits generated by violations often far exceed the legal risks faced by offenders.

That is a harmful signal for the digital economy as justice delivered too late often means the commercial value has already disappeared.

In the digital economic climate, the risk lies not only in the violations, but also in the inability of regulatory systems to keep pace with the speed of emerging business models.

If enforcement mechanisms continue to move more slowly than the spread of digital infringement, legitimate businesses will remain the greatest losers.

What businesses need now is not only tougher penalties, but faster and more effective protection mechanisms.

When a company that invests seriously in research, branding, and technology has to compete against low-cost ecosystems built on imitation, the damage extends far beyond the single enterprise.

What ultimately suffers is the creative motivation of the entire economy.

As such, protecting intellectual property is aimed at not only defending the rights of one company, but also keeping the whole economy’s innovation alive.

No economy can build a sustainable future if copying remains cheaper than creation.

* This article was originally written in Vietnamese by lawyer Truong Anh Tu and translated by Tuoi Tre News.