The Copyright Act has been amended with effect from May 14, 1998 to remove the right of a copyright owner to bring action for copyright infringement in respect of importation into New Zealand of goods made by or with the consent of the owner of the copyright or "other equivalent intellectual property right" in the country in which it was made. Apparently this provision applies even if the copyright owner in New Zealand differs from the copyright owner in the country where the goods were made. At the same time stronger penalties were introduced in respect of the import of counterfeit goods.