A salesman displays a branded handbag in a Beijing silk market. Inspectors previously confiscated more than 300 items during a raid on counterfeit or pirated goods in the market. (File photo)
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) on Thursday (Jan. 14) released the Notorious Markets List 2020 report, which lists 39 online and 34 physical marketplaces as notorious markets, including many Chinese companies such as Taobao and Baidu.com and many shopping malls such as Yiwu International Trade City and Shenzhen Huaqiangbei Electronics Mall.
Counterfeiting and piracy not only harm the U.S. economy, the innovation and intellectual property of U.S. intellectual property owners in foreign markets, but also hurt U.S. consumers. It is estimated that the amount of counterfeit and pirated products entering the U.S. each year accounts for approximately 2.5 percent of total imports, or nearly $500 billion.
In a statement, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said, “Holding IP infringers accountable and ensuring that U.S. innovators and creators have a full and fair opportunity to use and profit from their work is critical to both the physical and online markets.”
The report is intended to promote
the private sector and government to take appropriate action to reduce piracy and counterfeiting. this 2020 report also addresses, for the first time, the role of Internet platforms in fueling the importation of counterfeit and pirated goods into the United States.
“Today, the greatest risk of importing counterfeit and pirated goods, to the detriment of American creators and American consumers, is not caused by foreign flea markets (flea markets) and dark web sites (dark web sites), but by inappropriate policies and inappropriate actions by e-commerce companies that market and sell foreign products to American consumers “, Lighthizer said, “Combating piracy and counterfeiting requires sustained efforts by the federal government and the companies that profit from the sale of such goods.”
In terms of online marketplaces, Chinese companies Taobao and Baidu.com, among others, were included in the notorious marketplace.
Taobao is one of the largest e-commerce platforms in China. The report noted that Taobao has been identified as a notorious marketplace since 2016, but its number of counterfeit products remains high.
As for Baidu.com, the report said, “According to rights holders, infringers widely share links to pirated movies, TV series and books stored on Baidu.com. While rights holders reported some cooperation with Baidu in recent years, and Baidu has provided tools to intercept unauthorized movie and TV content, the interceptions reportedly take a long time and rights holders often have to follow up with Baidu to ensure that pirated content does not reappear on the platform.”
Also on the list are China’s largest business-to-business cross-border e-commerce platform Dunhuang.com, China’s second largest e-commerce platform Jindo and e-commerce shopping platform Weidian.
In terms of physical markets, the report notes that China’s physical markets continue to be a major source of counterfeit products, with approximately 92 percent of counterfeit and pirated goods seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in 2019 coming from the Chinese market when measured by total import value, and 83 percent when measured by total weight.
A number of malls in Fujian, Beijing and Guangdong provinces were included in the notorious markets.
Fujian Putian City Anfu Market (Anfu Market): the rights holder reported that Anfu Market is a wholesale distribution center for counterfeit footwear produced by hundreds of factories and workshops around Putian City, and that “Anfu Market reportedly has at least 100 street-level stores, the vast majority of which offer counterfeit goods from well-known brands.”
Shanghai Asia Pacific Xinyang Apparel and Gift Market: The USTR reports that this market is described by online travel guides as “one of the last big fake markets in Shanghai” and that “this market has many stalls openly selling counterfeit clothing and fashion accessories.”
Huaqiangbei Electronics Mall in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province (including Yuanwang, Longsheng, and Manha malls): The report says that each of the shopping centers in this area has hundreds of electronic equipment and component suppliers offering counterfeit computer chips, wiring, capacitors, and LEDs, as well as counterfeit smartphones, SD cards, and other goods.
A number of wholesale clothing markets and watch cities (Jindu, Zhanxi, and Nanfang Watch City) near Zhanxi Road in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province: mainly offering counterfeit clothing, shoes, and watches. “Up to 80% of the products in these markets are reportedly counterfeit.”
Beijing Ritan Business Building (Ritan Office Building): this market looks like an office building, but contains more than 50 stores that reportedly offer high-quality counterfeit clothing, footwear and accessories, the report said.
Beijing Xiushui Market: This market has been on the list of notorious markets since 2011, and rights holders report that most of the goods in this market are still counterfeit.
Shenyang Wuai Market, Shenyang, Liaoning Province: The largest market in northeastern China and a hub for the sale of counterfeit shoes, handbags, and apparel throughout the region.
Yiwu International Trade City, Yiwu City, Zhejiang Province: USTR says this is the world’s largest market for small commodities, with 50,000 suppliers selling a wide variety of consumer goods to customers worldwide, but mostly in bulk (mostly in bulk).
The American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA) later issued a statement welcoming the report issued by USTR.
“Identifying and publicly labeling the online platforms and physical locations where counterfeit products proliferate is critical to our ongoing efforts to protect American intellectual property, American jobs and American consumers. Thank you to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and the other U.S. government agencies involved in the preparation of this report for incorporating many of our ideas and recommendations,” said Steve Lamar, president and CEO of the association.
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