The Commission has issued a consultation report about the effects of the Enforcement Directive (Directive 2004/48/EC). In the analysis made of the directive the conclusions are:
·        The directive did have an impact on enforcement in the EU
·        The directive has led to different interpretations and implementations across the EU countries, and should be clarified.
Thinking about the effects I have noticed about this directive I can´t come up with many. Most of the initiatives in combating IP infringements have come from national initiatives and not from the law. I think the Danish anti pirate agenda has made a bigger impact than the directive.
In its report the Commission reveals that not many countries report an increase in the level of damages awarded. Given the fact that so much emphasis is made on damages in the directive this must be a bit disappointing. Actually having participated in the Danish implementation of the directive I´m a bit dissapointed myself.
The directive could be made clearer to remove any doubts where such exist but the real focus is to be placed elsewhere. The European Observatory on Counterfeiting and Piracy is the way to go in my opinion. Money spent on awareness initiatives, training and education will make a difference. Focus should broad across different types of IP.