China, Counterfeit Capital of the World

[MTR]

The other day, I bought something off eBay. The item was shipped from China and turned out to be a fake.
EBay covers this, so I just filed a SNAD and got a refund, but I had to be out of pocket for the return postage.

An estimated 15-20% of all goods in China are fake.
Chinese business people are, in general, quite dishonest.
No wonder China has the moniker Counterfeit Capital of the World.


Discuss what to do about the counterfeiting issues in China.

 

[RolandtheHeadless]

Yeah, I bought some DVDs of Japanese movies off eBay a few years ago. They were Chinese pirated copies. How do I know that?

Because of the English sub-title translations. Not only was the English terrible, but the characters all had Chinese names like "Ming" or "Yang." The movies' sub-titles had obviously first been translated from the spoken Japanese into Chinese, then translated from Chinese into English. The double-translation problem was beyond the language expertise of the translators.

 

[Tsuyoiko]

My husband works for Royal Mail International, and at least half his work involves counterfeit goods from China. People order branded products from sites that appear to be based in western countries, only to receive knockoffs from China. When they return them, the vendor claims not to have received them and refuses to issue a refund. In other words, they are getting paid for goods that they receive back and then sell on again.

 

[Emoni]

Tsuyoiko, isn't there some sort of shipping "sign on delivery" sort of thing that would help in a case like that? Are there any international laws that would apply?

 

[RolandtheHeadless]

Someone with more time might want to Google whether China is a signatory to the Berne (Copyright) Convention. They might have signed on, but their home enforcement may be done with a wink and a nod.

 

[Tsuyoiko]

Tsuyoiko, isn't there some sort of shipping "sign on delivery" sort of thing that would help in a case like that? Are there any international laws that would apply?

There is, but since it's more expensive than regular post most people don't want to pay for it. So long as you have proof of postage, Royal Mail offers compensation up to a certain amount - enough to cover a pair of counterfeit jeans anyway. So in a situation like this, the vendor gets his intial payment and the jeans back, the buyer gets his money back through compensation, so Royal Mail is the loser.

 

[MTR]

I paid $15 for the fake item, but the return postage PLUS the delivery confirmation was like $7.
Initially, the seller offered to refund me the retail price MINUS $5. He still tried to make money off me.
Wondering if that was worth the whole hassle..:?

 

[ItalianDude]

IMHO, this is accepted by Europe and USA.
For example, take a look at the C E logo (attachment #1).
It means that the product is ok for the European Community marked, it is safe and has been tested to adhere to some strict quality standards.

Strangely another logo instantly appeared just some days later.. it refers to "China Export".. and - wow! - it's got the same C E letters on it.
Only a very trained eye could catch the difference when buying a product. (see attachment #2)

And the European Community still do nothing about this!

The resons are simple:
#1 globalization is something wanted by the 5 main world corporations (which strongly influences and own media and politicians)
#2 USA and Europe have big debts with China

 

[AJBryant]

I look for Japanese armour on e-bay, and I'm amused at the number of Chinese shops offering VERY low prices for modern Japanese armour reproductions, but I *know* the company (which is in JAPAN) whose armours are shown in all those Chinese photographs. It's amazing that they're able to make not just exact duplicates of the Japanese product, but even their photographs share lighting and background. :roll:

China is one great big internet scam.

 

[Hezam]

huh!
Ebay is responsable.
Good information,I will be more careful..
Has anyone got fake goods ?

 

[sumaiya]

i dont think,japan goods are not that bad....
i have used a lot of their goods
As they are cheap,you will also save some money