Page 30 - Forbes India (December 2015)

powerful people jack ma

and distributing counterfeit goods. brands] have to work together with before submitting them to Alibaba.
The police have assigned two officers us instead of killing the soldiers.” The operation has successfully
to the Alibaba headquarters and are Since New Balance joined the scrubbed 130,000 counterfeit list-
jointly developing software with the “good faith” programme, Dan McKin- ings from Taobao. The programme
company to identify the sources of non says, taking down suspect is a “great partnership,” says Bob
counterfeits, based on Ma’s data. Man products has become much more Barchiesi, the coalition’s president.
Niu, director of the economic-crime efficient, with thousands of listings The project is now up to 26 brands.
investigation division of the public being removed. But he calls that “a “People have expectations that [Ali-
security department in Alibaba’s drop in the bucket”. McKinnon claims baba] should be handling this right
home province of Zhejiang, says that that at any given moment there are away. But it is a learning curve.”
he rounded up 300 suspects in 160 an average of 130,000 listings of New Nissan’s William Forsythe is less
counterfeiting cases with the aid of Balance products on Taobao that he impressed. He wraps his brand vigi-
Alibaba just since mid-summer. deems to be counterfeit or highly lance in the cloak of safety concern:
Alibaba has for years had a process dubious. Alibaba’s executives “want Specifically that counterfeit auto
by which brands can file take-down the brands to be happy, but they don’t parts, sold over Alibaba’s platforms,
requests when they spot fakes, but want only the brands to be happy,” he may hurt Chinese consumers—and
brands grumbled that it was too says. “They want the users to be happy make their way into body shops
confusing, the necessary paperwork and the consumers to be happy.” and automotive stores in the US.
too burdensome and Alibaba’s Duan Gang, assistant to the CEO “They are counting the money with
response too lethargic. So in July, of Chinese apparel company Trendy their left hand,” says Forsythe, “and
Alibaba opened an English-language International Group, says the number covering their eyes with their right.”
website through which brands can of shops peddling counterfeits of its
file take-down requests; previously Ochirly-branded clothing dropped libaba needs to deal with
the platform was not entirely in by two-thirds to 5,000 since it began three constituencies: Brands,
English. Since April, brands with a working more closely with Alibaba in A sellers and, of course, the
strong record of accurately spotting October 2014. The Washington-based end buyer. “One fake product is going
counterfeits have been allowed International Anti-Counterfeiting to make us lose five customers,”
into a “good faith” programme with Coalition signed a memorandum says Ma. “If we don’t control that,
simplified and speedier processes of understanding with Alibaba in the more customers we lose.”
to help pull fakes more quickly. 2013 to develop a special project to To ostensibly protect them,
Alibaba says the programme reduces remove counterfeits from Taobao. The Taobao has an enforcement sys-
the time it takes to remove a listing coalition hired two analysts and one tem: Merchants are penalised with
from three to five days to one to attorney to review complaints from “strikes” and “points” for various
three days. That’s still a far cry from the then 20 brands in the programme transgressions. Selling counterfeits
eBay, which says that it handled 92
percent of the complaints it received BiG mouTh, BiG REAch
within 12 hours in 2014. “We are The world’s biggest media mogul isn’t shy about using his influence to make his personal
very open to partner,” Ma says. “We opinions heard—and between outlets like the Wall Street Journal, the Sky News network,
are the military fighting against book publisher HarperCollins and broadcasting giant 21st Century Fox, he’s got the
attention of nearly everyone on earth. Fox and News Corp now have a combined market
the counterfeit terrorists. [The cap in excess of $70 billion, and Murdoch boasts a fortune of $13.1 billion.

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gOVeRnment & POLicy PHiLantHROPy & ReLigiOn Finance & inVestment Business cRime & teRROR

30 | FORBES INDIA DECEMBER 11, 2015