By SEMA Washington, D.C., Staff
As a result of its 2015 Out-of-Cycle Review of Notorious Markets, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) issued a warning to Alibaba requiring the global e-commerce company take steps to address counterfeiting or face relisting on the Notorious Markets List. The agency indicated that complaints from industry stakeholders prompted a detailed discussion on how Alibaba has fallen short in its measures to address the issues plaguing its online shopping platform, Taobao. Specifically, the USTR recommended Taobao’s takedown processes and procedures be simplified, quicker and made generally available.
Elsewhere in the report, the USTR highlights the dangers associated with the sale of counterfeit consumer products, including car parts, which could “endanger consumer health and safety as many counterfeits are made inexpensively with substandard or hazardous materials.”
The full report on the 2015 Out-of-Cycle Review of Notorious Markets is available on the USTR website.
For more information, please contact Ashley Ailsworth at ashleya@sema.org.