Counterfeit Harry Potter (And Fake Pork)

Last week, while running through the Beijing airport, I picked up a copy of the latest Harry Potter book. While I have read the other 6 books, part of the reason that I was willing to part with the $49 (!!!) that it cost (almost 50% more than the US retail and 2.7x Amazon’s price) was that I was so surprised to see it available in China, especially so soon after the US release date. However, the widespread distribution has not reached other parts of China, and the high price has - surprise! - led to counterfeiting. Not content to merely making exact copies a la fake DVDs, some Chinese have even repurposed the characters to be used in brand new stories.

This comes just a few weeks after a story about a Beijing vendor selling fake meat buns stuffed with cardboard was reported to be fake itself. However, some theorize that the government itself is faking the fakeness of the story to both limit the power of the press and allay concerns about food safety in China. All I know is, you can’t trust anything in China.

Just to be clear, my copy of Harry Potter is indeed the genuine version. I think.