AliExpress Added, Amazon Dropped From U.S. Govt's Notorious Counterfeit Market Blacklist

Activities cause significant financial losses for American businesses and workers, and consumer safety risks.

March 2, 2022, Los Angeles, CA – Alibaba's AliExpress joins the U.S. "Notorious Market List." The U.S. Trade Representative's blacklist identifies 42 online markets and 35 physical markets reported to engage in counterfeiting or piracy -- the world's largest criminal enterprise. After two years on the list, Amazon was dropped without explanation, yet retains the distinction of being the first and only U.S. company on the list.

The list also includes search-engine provider Baidu Wangpan, marketplace DHgate, social shopping site Pinduoduo, Tencent operated WeChat, and Alibaba-owned Taobao.

The USTR addressed the inclusion of AliExpress to The Fashion Law for the first time. The USTR reported that right's holders have cited “a significant increase in counterfeit goods being offered for sale on AliExpress, including goods that are blatantly advertised as counterfeit and goods that are falsely advertised as genuine.” In addition to reports of “a vast increase in the number of sellers offering counterfeit goods” via AliExpress, the USTR asserts that “another key concern is that known sellers of counterfeit goods on AliExpress remain prevalent, purportedly due in part to the lenient seller penalty system and a removal process that does not deter sellers from continuing to offer counterfeit goods.” 

The USTR characterizes the Tencent-operated platform WeChat, which has 1.2 billion active users around the world in 2021, as “one of the largest platforms for counterfeit goods in China.”

The Fashion Law also reported that no mention was been made in this year’s list or by the USTR about how Amazon managed to avoid being named. The USTR previously reported that Amazon is challenged with “high levels of counterfeit goods,” and concern that “Amazon does not sufficiently vet sellers on its platforms.” The “counterfeit removal processes can be lengthy and burdensome, even for right holders that enroll in Amazon’s brand protection programs.” 

Inclusion on the USTR’s list does not carry any direct penalties, instead it is used to encourage foreign entities and nations to crack down on piracy and counterfeiting.