Digital labeling of electronics

2024

Electronics sellers asked the Ministry of Industry and Trade not to introduce mandatory labeling of laptops and smartphones

On February 13, 2024, the Association of Trading Companies and Manufacturers of Electrical Household and Computer Equipment RATEK sent a letter to the Ministry of Industry and Trade with a request to abandon the idea of ​ ​ mandatory labeling of consumer electronics. We are talking about smartphones, mobile phones and laptops, as well as printed circuit boards.

In January 2024, according to the Kommersant newspaper, the Ministry of Industry and Trade published a draft resolution on amending government decree No. 1993, which regulates the experiment on the labeling of radio electronics (lighting equipment, plugs and other products). The list of such goods proposed to include portable computers and cellular devices in order to "counter the illegal circulation of industrial products." The new rules are designed to "exclude gray schemes for the supply of equipment with which taxes and fees are not paid and which does not meet quality and safety requirements."

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However, the RATEK association, which includes about 40 companies, including Huawei, LG, Philips, M.Video-Eldorado, Honor and re: store, believes that additional measures to combat counterfeit are unnecessary. The letter to the Ministry of Industry and Trade says that the Russian market for laptops, smartphones and phones "is sufficiently legal," and about 70% of goods are sold through federal and regional retail chains. And therefore, "countering the illegal circulation of these products cannot be the basis for the introduction of labeling." According to available information, large retail chains oppose labeling - primarily M.Video-Eldorado and DNS.

On the other hand, the initiative of the Ministry of Industry and Trade is supported by electronics manufacturers. In their opinion, the introduction of labeling of consumer electronics will ensure the transparency of imports, which will contribute to "compliance with the requirements applied to products of Russian origin." In addition, there will be an additional opportunity to control and combat counterfeit. Aquarus President Vladimir Stepnov believes that labeling can become an effective tool for building trust and confirming safety for consumers.^[1]

Launch of digital labeling of smartphones and laptops

At the end of January 2024, it became known about the decision of the Ministry of Industry and Trade to include smartphones, landline phones and laptops in an experiment on digital labeling of electronic products. The corresponding initiative is contained in the draft government decree prepared by the department.

According to TASS with reference to this document, the experiment will begin on February 29, 2024 and was supposed to take place by the end of February 2025, but extended until April 30, 2025.

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The Ministry of Industry and Trade said that the experiment on labeling radioelectronic products will not affect its cost, since equipment for the time of its conduct and labeling codes are provided to manufacturers for free. According to the deputy head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade Vasily Shpak, labeling electronic products will protect consumers from purchasing fakes. This, in turn, will give a serious incentive for the development of domestic production of equipment, he said.

Kommersant previously wrote that the Ministry of Industry and Trade and Ministry of Digital Development are discussing the prospect of introducing labeling for laptops, tablets and smartphones, citing sources in the government and the electronics market. According to the interlocutors, funds stably received from excise taxes can go to support Russian electronics manufacturers - we can talk about the amount of up to 30 billion rubles a year.

According CNews to a market source, the labeling will not allow domestic companies to import Chinese laptops, smartphones and tablets under the guise of Russian registered electronics. The labeling will apply to all products in circulation in the country, and will solve several problems at once, the representative told the publication. Fplus It is planned to label the end product and the board itself, the publication will specify.^[2][3]

2023: Digital Lighting Marking Launch

On December 1, 2023 Russia , digital labeling of lighting and other electronic components will begin. In particular, rectifiers, converters, plugs and sockets, relays for a voltage of no more than 1000 V, connectors and contact elements, consoles, panels, consoles, etc. fell under this experiment, they write on November 28, 2023 "" Sheets with reference to the published draft government decree.

The experiment will be carried out in relation to lighting products and its components. Participation in it will be voluntary. Marking codes will be provided to manufacturers and other participants in the turnover of products free of charge, the document says.

On December 1, 2023, digital labeling of lighting and other electronic components will begin

According to the authors of the experiment, it is carried out in order to test the technologies for applying identification tools to goods, work out the procedure for interaction of turnover participants with the labeling system and decide on the advisability of introducing mandatory labeling of such products and its components. The labeling operator will be the Center for the Development of Advanced Technologies (CRPT).

Such departments and regulators as the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Digital Industry, the Federal Tax Service, Rospotrebnadzor, the Federal Customs Service, the Federal Security Service, as well as the Federal Accreditation Service will take part in the experiment, which will last until February 28, 2025. The government expects to receive the first reports on the pilot project by May 1, 2024, and November 1 of the same year will be the next benchmark date.

The Association of LED Manufacturers and Systems Based on Them (APSS, unites more than 70 Russian companies) told the publication that labeling LED products will help identify tax evasion schemes, and will also allow the government to receive real information about the market situation, on the basis of which it is possible to quickly develop measures to support domestic manufacturers.^[4]

2022: Digital Electronics Labeling Launch in Russia

In mid-February 2022, the timing of the start of the experiment on digital labeling of electronics, including smartphones, laptops, tablet computers, e-books, video cameras and printed circuit boards, became known. In total, the Ministry of Industry and Trade included 26 items from the customs classifier of goods in the list.

According to Kommersant, marking electronics on a voluntary basis will begin on March 1, 2022, the experiment will last until January 31, 2023. For its holding, a special information system will be created, its operator will be the "Center for the Development of Advanced Technologies" (CRPT).

Digital labeling of smartphones, tablets and laptops launches in Russia

Karina Abagyan, Director for Strategic Development of Micron JSC, believes that in the case of electronics, collection can become a means of stimulating the purchase of Russian products. However, she admits, "manufacturers will face an additional financial burden that will affect the cost of devices."

Russian processor developers told the publication that labeling is needed, as it will help protect buyers from low-quality gray imports, and also spur sales levels of domestic products from retailers.

Foreign suppliers of these products opposed the digital labeling of electronics. Thus, the Representative of the Association of Trading Companies and Producers of Electrical Household and Computer Equipment (RATEK; unites Apple, Huawei, LG, HP, etc.) Anton Guskov called this project useless, explaining that electronics and household appliances are one of the most legal segments: there is almost no counterfeit, most products have a serial number, and smartphones and tablets are also IMEI. According to Guskov, by mid-February 2022, electronics suppliers are already paying an environmental fee that stipulates disposal. The appearance of waste collection will lead "only to an increase in the cost of production," he is sure.^[5]

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