Conversations today are already moving away from "What does the National Defense Authorization Act mean?" to "How is my company going to be impacted, and what am I doing about it?" This mental shift brings with it another set of challenges requiring increased collaboration, communication, trust and thought leadership throughout the electronics industry, several industry watchers have noted. A tall order, some acknowledged, because of the deep-rooted stigma and heightened concern about potential liability related to discovering counterfeits anywhere in a part's chain of custody.

Even so, if consensus is true, then the electronic industry's current dialogue on this topic is a good start, but still largely perfunctory. Companies most affected by both the law and customers' updated risk-management requirements are doing what they can to be legally compliant, but an ongoing weak economic climate and a lack of specific governmental direction raise legitimate questions about whether the cost of an anti-counterfeiting program justifies the business case.

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Keywords: anti-counterfeiting initiatives, counterfeit electronics, National Defense Authorization Act, electronics industry & counterfeiting, brand protection of electronics parts