Unsurprisingly, eBay’s fine for sales of fake Louis Vuitton via the site has garnered rather a lot of comment over the week. The Times predicts a run of copy-cat lawsuits from other manufacturers, while the LA Times asks should eBay be the world’s copyright cop?, and seems to come out on eBay’s side:
There’s a fairness issue too. If Vuitton is responsible for enforcing its trademarks, the costs are passed on to Vuitton customers. If EBay has to enforce them, the costs will be borne by everyone who buys or sells there — most of whom aren’t in the market for haute couture.
Tiernan Ray on Seeking Alpha also comes out against the fine.
The Telegraph tells us how to spot a fake on eBay, and also observes that eBay’s changes are making it more like a shopping mall than a car boot sale.
And the award for headline of the week goes to The Guardian for A handbag? eBay is going to have to be more earnest.
