How to defeat the counterfeiters – the growing use of colour shift inks, in register holograms and thermochromic inks to stop the brand pirates
Annual losses through counterfeiting, product piracy and brand diversion are estimated to now account for as much as 7 of world trade, costing between £120 and £180 billion GBP in lost revenue. This immense problem causes the world largest brands serious headaches, and has created an underground war between the brands and the counterfeiters. Consumers are used to see holograms on banknotes and financial cards, and for some time holograms have been used on packaging to indicate authenticity. However, generic “wallpaper” hologram designs have now lost much of their effectiveness, and only security printed “in register” holograms are effective at deterring pirating, especially when used in conjunction with other techniques. In register holograms are applied in exact registration, with the image being applied with very specialised equipment with a clear border. This makes them difficult to copy with even access to specialised foil supplies.An emerging technology is that of colour shift inks. These inks are printed in larger blocks to create an effect whereby the apparent colour changes dependant on what angle you look at the printed image. Famously adopted by Pfizer the pharmaceutical company, colour shift inks are notoriously difficult to copy and can be easily incorporated into tamper evident labels.User authentication is of course key to successfully defeating counterfeiting, as if a consumer is clearly aware that an article is counterfeit at the point of sale, then it stands a much lower chance of being purchased. For companies serious about user authentication, thermochromic inks are a very valuable tool. Thermochromic inks fall into 2 categories· reversible thermochromic inks change colour from normal to altered and back to normal again many times · irreversible thermochromic inks change colour only once, from normal to altered, leaving a permanent indication that the temperature has changedTypical applications for thermochromic labels include security authentication and brand protection, as labels can change colour on contact with body heat . For example reversible thermochromic inks that change colour at body temperature can be printed as overt or covert “patches” with instructions to the user to apply skin contact to see if the printed patch changes colour. This also enhances the value of the product as the customer interacts with the brand packaging. The key feature of thermochromic inks to be aware of is that at normal temperature, the majority of inks are solid colours (typically red, blue or black), but change to become clear at the designated change temperature. This allows the normal printed image to be hidden at normal temperature, and show at the colour change temperature.Anti counterfeit printing and packaging is a constant battle between brand owner seeking to protect the value of their products, and the counterfeiter offering an inferior product. It’s a battle that currently has no clear winner, but by adopting in register holograms and thermochromic inks on your packaging, you may well defer the counterfeiters interest elsewhere!A specialist supplier of such technologies is Mercian Labels (www.securitylabels.com) who are the market leader in tamper evident labels incorporating features such as thermochromic inks and in register holograms for specialised applications.
About the Author
Dr Adrian Steele PhD is a leading researcher into label technologies at Mercian Labels Ltd (UK) - www.securitylabels.com/holograms.htm and www.selfadhesivelabels.com/thermochromic_labels.html Visit their website at: http://www.securitylabels.com/holograms.htm
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