Alibaba's Taobao Back On The List Of Most Notorious Markets
Zacks Investment Research | Jan 15, 2018 10:08PM ET
Alibaba Group Holding Limited’s (NYSE:BABA) Taobao was recently put on United States Trade Representative’s (USTR) annual list of world’s most “notorious markets”, for the second consecutive year, along with 24 other online markets and 18 physical markets.
Alleged sale of counterfeit products on the online shopping platform and the challenges faced by the right(s) holders in removing and stopping sale of such illegal products are the reasons behind Taobao being blacklisted.
USTR said in its report, “A high volume of infringing products reportedly continue to be offered for sale and sold on Taobao.com and stakeholders continue to report challenges and burdens associated with IP enforcement on the platform.”
Also, the agency recommended ways through which Alibaba Group can improve its position by stating, “Simplifying processes for right holders to register and request enforcement action; making good faith takedown procedures generally available; and reducing Taobao’s timelines for takedowns and issuing penalties for counterfeit sellers.”
Moreover, it stressed on the fact that Alibaba’s efforts to protect brands and IP appeared to be more biased toward global brands, neglecting small and medium businesses.
To defend the company, Alibaba’s President Mike Evans spoke up in a blog post, “In light of all this, it’s clear that no matter how much action we take and progress we make, the USTR is not actually interested in seeing tangible results. Therefore, our inclusion on its list is not an accurate representation of Alibaba’s results in protecting brands and IP, and we have no other choice but to conclude that this is a deeply flawed, biased and politicized process.”
Notably, shares of Alibaba have gained 95.3% in the past 12 months, substantially outperforming its Zacks Investment Research
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