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Counterfeiting is a real issue on Amazon, I understand the appeal of what Birkenstock is trying to achieve : if you see a product labelled Birkenstock on Amazon
by doe88 9y ago
Counterfeiting is a real issue on Amazon, I understand the appeal of what Birkenstock is trying to achieve : if you see a product labelled Birkenstock on Amazon it's likely counterfeit, don't buy. Sometimes it is worth playing the long game and in this case I think he is right to protect its brand above all else.
- andreasklinger 9y agoSimilar issue: Buying apple headphones on amazon >All< of them are fake
- cjsuk 9y agoMy daughter got bitten by this. Contacted Amazon and they refunded. Still selling them though!
- kbart 9y ago"Contacted Amazon and they refunded. Still selling them though!" That's the most annoying thing about Amazon. Even if you report obviously counterfeit item, they still continue to sell it. I don't get it, how this can be legal and why nobody sued them yet? Compare that to draconian DCMA actions, where the slightest suspicion can get your site blocked for good..
- CWuestefeld 9y agoI think folks misunderstand the Amazon data model. It appears that Product represents a thing that can be sold. But beneath that there's something like a SellerItem, which represents a given Product as sourced from a particular Seller. If Amazon is notified of a counterfeit Product, the correct action is NOT to remove the Product. There's no reason to think that there's anything wrong with that SKU (it's got the right description, part#, media assets, reviews, and everything). The problem is the SellerItem - they ought to do something about the naughty seller who's trying to pass off the counterfeit item as if it's the actual Product. Thus, even if Amazon nukes the offending Seller, the Product will still appear on the site. But one would hope that the offending seller is not listed as one of the choices for fulfilling the order. Now, Amazon's apparent willingness to treat on-hand inventory from all Sellers as fungible is another problem...
- kbart 9y agoWhy should I even care about their data model as a costumer? If any other seller would pull a trick like this: "sorry, my supplier provided counterfeit items - I have nothing to do with it", they would be f-cked anyway. If Amazon stores, Amazon sells, Amazon ships then Amazon is responsible. Try to order some counterfeit iPhones from China and sell them on local market. When authorities come, give them an excuse: "look, it's an Apple logo on it and supplier told it's really iPhone, it's not my fault this item is counterfeit" and tell us how it went.
- CWuestefeld 9y agoYes, of course. What I'm trying to explain is why it doesn't make sense to expect Amazon to completely expunge all references to a given Product simply because one Seller has been shown to offer counterfeit instances of it.
- kbart 9y agoI do understand what you mean, I just don't understand how Amazon avoids responsibility for not filtering their suppliers whereas all other retailers are enforced to that and face hefty fines for failing to do so. There's no use of removing one individual seller when 10 comes in its place instantly.
- Spooky23 9y agoIf they lack the ability to isolate inventory originating from untrustworthy sources or adequately manage its supplier relationships, then yes. This will blow up in their face when a bunch of preschoolers die when a fake iPad charger or battery burns the school down.
- syshum 9y agoSo if you go to the mall, and in the mall a seller sold a counterfeit item, then you believe the Mall will be shutdown, not just the individual store in the mall? Really? because that is what Amazon is, an online shopping mall
- ninv 9y ago>they still continue to sell it That's how they make money. 8 out of 10 people won't report or can't spot a fake product. They are playing odds here.
- alistairSH 9y agoLiterally? As in, Apple doesn't sell on Amazon? Including Beats?
- rbrcurtis 9y agoAnd yet many of those fakes are decent quality. :)
- Allower 9y agoThis article has literally NOTHING to do with counterfeiting. Though its a real issue as you say, its completely irrelevant to the issue at hand
- glitcher 9y agoA quick search on amazon for "birkenstock", all departments, I get 1023 results. I wonder if Birkenstock is facing a giant game of whack-a-mole here.
- sfifs 9y agonope they're trying to project or imply that their Brand products bought on Amazon is likely to be fake.