The Auto Care Association recently applauded the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) for relisting Alibaba’s Taobao, China’s largest mobile commerce site, on its Notorious Markets List.
The Notorious Markets List is a collection of physical and online marketplaces that engage in, benefit from or turn a blind eye to counterfeit goods.
The list appears in USTR’s report 2017 Out-of-Cycle Review of Notorious Markets Report and currently includes 43 markets.
“Counterfeit auto parts represent a significant danger to the safety and welfare of the general public, and also pose a significant economic threat to our industry,” Bill Hanvey, Auto Care Association president and CEO, said. “We thank the USTR for its tremendous efforts and the strong action plan outlined in the report to address rights holders’ concerns.”
An automobile parts trade association conducted a search on Taobao, the USTR said, and found very few legitimate parts. Most of the counterfeit parts use U.S. brand names.
Alibaba says it has removed more than 230,000 vendors off the site since 2016. Listing airbags and airbag components have been banned from the site.
The USTR commends Alibaba for its efforts but emphasizes more must be done such as banning widely counterfeited products and developing more effective tools to address concerns.