Alibaba Expansion Risks Increased Counterfeits, says AAFA
Alibaba will increase counterfeit merchandise in global circulation if the company succeeds in plans to expand its platform and generate more sales, said Juanita Duggan, CEO of the American Apparel and Footwear Association, in a July 17 letter to Jack Ma, executive chairman of Alibaba (here). AAFA and Alibaba have ramped up collaboration over the past year, but that hasn't yielded a “meaningful outcome,” said Duggan.
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To prevent counterfeiting from becoming more pervasive, Alibaba must implement a process removing counterfeits at the request of certified brands, Duggan said. The suggested four-step process begins with easy brand certification so that brand owners can be certified more quickly in order to initiate "take-downs." Next, Alibaba must create a simple, automated program where brand owners can protect their intellectual property rights and report counterfeits that will be taken down quickly and permanently. Authorized sellers must be pre-approved by Alibaba and wholesale sellers must establish prior authorization. Finally, anti-counterfeiting progress of efforts must be openly accessible for the public to view, she said. The AAFA recently criticized TaoBao, an online service of Alibaba, for marketing counterfeit goods and recommended that the e-service be put on the United States Trade Representative's 2015 Special 301 Notorious Markets List (see 1504100012).