EBay Wins Lengthy Trademark Battle Against Tiffany

by JeffHuang | July 15, 2008 at 05:39 pm | 741 views | 9 comments

Previous article written about eBay paying $61 million to Fashion Companies over sales of fake Good can be read here.

With the recent courtroom defeat of eBay, there is finally a reason for them to celebrate as they have won a lawsuit over Tiffany for the selling of counterfeit Tiffany items. The two lawsuits, the Tiffany lawsuit against eBay and the LVMH lawsuit against eBay seems quite similar. They are both lawsuits against eBay for selling counterfeit goods, but the result is $61 million different.

I am not too sure about the details of the lawsuit, but I find it very difficult for eBay to monitor or even know which items are real and which are fake.

On the heels of a $61 million loss to French luxury goods group LVMH, eBay on Monday secured a legal victory in its trademark battle with jeweler Tiffany.

The online auction site has been battling with the luxury jewelry retailer since 2004, when Tiffany sued eBay for allegedly allowing the sale of counterfeit Tiffany items.

Judge Richard Sullivan with the Southern District Court of New York rejected the idea that eBay is responsible for policing its site for fake Tiffany items.

"The court is not unsympathetic to Tiffany and other rights owners who have invested enormous resources in developing their brands, only to see them illicitly and efficiently exploited by others on the Internet," Sullivan wrote in his 66-page ruling [PDF]. "Nevertheless, the law is clear: it is the trademark owner's burden to police its mark, and companies like eBay cannot be held liable for trademark infringement based solely on their generalized knowledge that trademark infringement might be occurring on their websites."

EBay said the judge's decision was a "victory for consumers."

I personally would never buy these named brand goods on eBay. There is just no way for me to find out whether the items are legitimate or fake as I do not want to pay for counterfeit items.

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amyjudd

at 17:52 on July 15th, 2008

good stuff:

JeffHuang, I like this story. It's good stuff.

Abby Lanes

at 22:23 on July 15th, 2008

Flat Stanley visited Tiffany & Co. in Beverly Hills. He didn't see anyone from Ebay there. He also didn't see one single counterfeit item there either.

Flat Stanley made his long journey to California, from Newton, North Carolina for the price of two postage stamps. Aren't we all so envious of him? He enjoyed his visit to Tiffany and Co., and wishes everyone involved in the lawsuit a happy day!

Abby Lanes has contributed a photo to this story.

ma_arshia

at 23:16 on July 15th, 2008

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bluryee

at 00:27 on July 16th, 2008

Completely agree with Jeff - I would never buy any branded goods from retail stores which are not of the brands. I mean if you can afford it, why buy it from eBay? Just waltz right into the boutique and get your money's worth (the super attentive service from the salespeople that comes along with the branding, for starters)!

littleladylove

at 00:36 on July 16th, 2008

Saw a girl on the train with a fake tiffany ring last night. The silver wasn't nice, the writing wasn't distinct enough. Awful. I don't know why poeple buy this stuff. Real tiffany is quality. Not just a brand.

_mubblegum_

at 04:19 on July 16th, 2008

I'd never buy that kind of thing from eBay, it's just obligatory following of trends and what people's friend's have. I've seen a lot of younger girls with the fake goods, and have been even given the fake goods as presents, thinking they were real. But there was no certificate, no proof, and the symbols were obviously false.

UB1970

at 07:08 on July 16th, 2008

Picture was taken in Vienna, Austria Christmas 2007.

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desi.snowcake

at 12:06 on July 16th, 2008

I bought myself a Tiffany Necklace but before i put it around my neck, i had to take some pictures from the wondefully wrapped Tiffany box. You will always remember your first visit by Tiffany & Co.

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claudio_base

at 15:35 on July 16th, 2008

Tiffany & Co.: Maybe the best jewels in the world. Necklace for a gift (for myself :o) ) bought in T&Co. Milan, Italy.

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