Tiffany Disputes eBay's Model

["Richard M. Smith" <rms () computerbytesman com>]

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120649315497764263.html?mod=technology_main_
whats_news

Tiffany Disputes eBay's Model
By CHAD BRAY
March 26, 2008; Page B5C

A legal showdown between jeweler Tiffany & Co. and eBay Inc. over
counterfeit items has the potential to significantly change the way the
online auction Web site does business, legal experts say.

After a bench trial in November, a federal judge in New York is now
considering whether the San Jose, Calif., online auction Web site should be
required to vet its millions of listings each day for counterfeit goods
instead of relying on trademark holders to flag auctions of potentially
inauthentic merchandise.

"I think this may be one of those cases that sets precedent," said Peter D.
Vogl, an intellectual property lawyer at Jones Day in New York.

...

Tiffany argues that eBay knew it had a problem with counterfeit items being
listed on its Web site and did little to clean it up. Instead, eBay insisted
the obligation rested with the New York jeweler to identify and alert it to
auctions of counterfeit Tiffany silver jewelry.

EBay's lawyers counter that Tiffany made a limited commitment to fighting
knockoffs -- budgeting only about $14 million to anti-counterfeiting -- and
has unfairly tried to shift the legal burden to eBay.

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