China opposed to US listing Taobao as market for piracy|Economy|chinadaily.com.cn
"BEIJING - China is "greatly concerned and strongly opposed" to the United States' listing of Taobao, the country's largest consumer e-commerce website, as a notorious market for piracy, a spokesman for China's Ministry of Commerce said on Wednesday.
Last month, the United States kept Alibaba Group's Taobao unit on the United States Trade Representative's (USTR) November notorious markets list for offering a wide range of copyright infringing products."
I bet the United States would never list Ebay as a notorious market for piracy though. Put it this way, would anyone buy a Louis Vuitton handbag or Rolex watch from Ebay?
LOL . . Is eBay a notorious market or just a huge market where some crap is pulled? I am still on the fence.
I was recently searching eBay for a specific stamp (Scott #Q6) and I found several. One photograph by a certain seller was exactly the same photograph used by another seller. So the first seller was a liar.
I recall a stamp investigation web site that scoured eBay for images of philatelic items. They kept a data base of images so potential buyers could see if the images are legitimate or if some wanker simply found an image on the web and made up a listing. This was primarily aimed at people that spend thousands on a single stamp. Countless examples of a dealer's images being used by a seller. This is wrong, period.
In my example, I could look at the perfs, defects, centering and other things to prove the seller simply lifted another seller's image. If they have the actual stamp, they should scan it; some things are very important to collectors.
I tend not to use eBay unless I know the seller or the reputation of the seller. If Starklite Motorcycles has a nice Chief for sale, I would have zero concerns wiring him $45,000.00 plus shipping because he is a respected dealer. That said, a local dealer wanted more than $60,000.00 for a bike worth only about half that. He told me about rarity and he was wrong. This is why I avoid every one of his auctions. He is a fool and he is clueless. He wanted $125.00 to change a chain on a Sportster.
If it is a seller I do not know, I'll have it looked at in person and decide. Then I will use an escrow service of my choosing, not the seller's. Lots of potential issues with seller recommended escrow outfits.
Yes, I would buy a Rolex from some dealers. I know their reputation and it is a safe bet. Same with uncut gem rough and fountain pens. Not sure I would buy from a seller I did not know, but it depends on the item. I would need to look at the item and decide how much I can afford to lose.
I recently received something that was not as described (a set of mother of pearl casino chips) and the seller took them back. But I recall buying a lighter and it never arrived. I once bought an item and the seller did not want to list the other one (broken) she had so she added it to the box at no charge.
I once sold a SLC Police badge, but eBay pulled the listing. They wanted a declaration that my item was genuine. I had to send them proof that it was not a reproduction. I told them where it came from and they allowed the listing. Then I received more than 50 messages from buyers that wanted it for their collection and many of these buyers told me it will be hard to sell because few people want old police items. One very interesting message was from the curator of the SLC PD museum. The officer told me it was worth more than a grand so do not fall for the crooks that will try to steal it. It was a hit item and it sold for a surprising amount.
In my opinion, eBay, Google, and others will do only the very minimum required by law and nothing more. Their bottom line is what is vital and they will fight anything that cuts into their bottom line. They do not have enough employees to vet every listing. I can only wonder what they are saying about the new laws.
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