Oh boo-hoo. Their 3P sales have become a cesspool to say the least.
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Apple Files $2M+ Lawsuit Against Counterfeiter, Finds 90% of 'Genuine' Accessories on Amazon Are Knockoffs
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Oh boo-hoo. Their 3P sales have become a cesspool to say the least.
[doublepost=1476895762][/doublepost]I wonder what has taken Apple so long. There are thousands of knockoff Apple products on Amazon. Mag-safe adapters for $40? come on, those all FAKES. Amazon and Apple need to stop the knockoffs.
Apple has filed a lawsuit against Mobile Star LLC, accusing the firm of infringing upon its registered trademarks and copyrights by selling counterfeit 5W USB Power Adapters and Lightning to USB cables on Amazon and Groupon, according to court documents published electronically this week.
Apple said the counterfeit power products pose a significant danger to consumer safety because, among other things, they lack adequate insulation and/or have inadequate spacing between low voltage and high voltage circuits, creating risks of overheating, fire, and electrical shock.The legal complaint says the products, shipped and sold by Amazon through its Fulfilled by Amazon program, were listed as genuine Apple products, often using the company's copyrighted marketing images. Apple said Mobile Star's counterfeit products hurt its sales and damage its reputation.
Apple determined at least a portion of Mobile Star LLC's chargers and cables were counterfeit upon purchasing them as part of its routine efforts to combat the distribution and sale of knockoff products. It then alerted Amazon, which subsequently removed Mobile Star's selling privileges.
Takedown notices are standard procedure for Apple, which found that almost 90% of so-called genuine Apple products and accessories it purchased from Amazon over the last nine months were actually counterfeit.Apple went one step further and filed a lawsuit in this case because it said Mobile Star's distribution of counterfeit Apple products "brazenly continues" and extends beyond Amazon, including Groupon and direct sales. Mobile Star has also allegedly failed to cooperate with Apple upon being contacted.Apple is seeking damages of up to $150,000 for each registered copyright infringed, in addition to damages of up to $2 million per trademark infringed. Apple has demanded a jury trial in the case, titled Apple Inc. v. Mobile Star LLC, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
Article Link: Apple Files $2M+ Lawsuit Against Counterfeiter, Finds 90% of 'Genuine' Accessories on Amazon Are Knockoffs
I'll be really sad to see MagSafe disappear. It's a little marvel. On several occasions I've had an agitated cat appear out of nowhere and take a flying leap at my laptop. Ping! The MagSafe connector just disconnected. I'm pretty sure there would have been some damage with a USB-C connector doing the charging.
Counterfeit products are rampant across Amazon's store. Amazon really needs to figure out a way to filter out these morons and have some sort of verification process to determine if the seller is legitimate or not. It's getting really bad. I've purchased several counterfeit products that were supposedly from the original company, but they weren't. It's getting worse, not better ... so I'm glad Apple is bringing this issue into the limelight.
It's not just the sellers at fault. Amazon needs a better system in place to weed out the morons.
Yep, don't trust anything claiming to be an Apple accessory on Amazon. Virtually all "apple headphones" on Amazon are terrible fakes.
Wasn't there also that guy who looked through and rated USB-C chargers sold on Amazon, as a lot of them could fry a Chromebook?
This is an issue that has been happening for a long time on Amazon. I've found myself being very careful when buying peripherals. And though it's not in Amazon's interest to resell or retail dangerous equipment, 90% is an ashamedly high number.
Luckily it's not too late to sort it out. I'm sure that with increased pressure from Apple and Google, we'll see some proper change.
This is an issue that has been happening for a long time on Amazon. I've found myself being very careful when buying peripherals. And though it's not in Amazon's interest to resell or retail dangerous equipment, 90% is an ashamedly high number.
Luckily it's not too late to sort it out. I'm sure that with increased pressure from Apple and Google, we'll see some proper change.
That's why I seldom buy anything (especially electronics) off Amazon. You can't even trust them when it's sold and fulfilled *by* Amazon.
Amazing how people are ready on their couches to pass judgements without using a tiny bit of their tiny brains...
Given the number of deaths from fake chargers, this is truly scary. Amazon has a duty of care to their customers. If it's too burdensome, then Amazon's business model is wrong.
I only buy Anker batteries, wall chargers, and cables from Amazon for my iOS devices and I will continue to do so. They make quality stuff at reasonable prices.
I remember the first time I did a search for Lightning cables on Amazon years ago before I knew about Anker. I quickly realized what a cesspool the "genuine OEM" listings for Lightning cables are on Amazon. Many of the "genuine OEM" listings just look sketchy. Glad I passed on buying those and kept searching until I found Anker's products.
I remember the first time I did a search for Lightning cables on Amazon years ago before I knew about Anker. I quickly realized what a cesspool the "genuine OEM" listings for Lightning cables are on Amazon. Many of the "genuine OEM" listings just look sketchy. Glad I passed on buying those and kept searching until I found Anker's products.
Here it is. I did not download the 46 pages of exhibits or the cover sheet.
https://www.scribd.com/document/328175725/Apple-Inc-v-Mobile-Star-LLC-Complaint
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It would be simple for the counterfeiters to copy the circuit and layout in the Apple chargers. But they don't. It is the height of greed when you deliberately cheapen a product in such a way that it can knowingly kill a person. Amazingly, the extra cost in parts might be $2.
Yes, normally I would avoid Marketplace sellers when it says "sold by some random vendor from overseas.com".
But the screen shots say "shipped from and sold by Amazon.com", which would seem trusted to me.
The problem isn't the brand ... it's that companies pretending to be from said company are in fact lying and making counterfeit products. It's not just Apple products this is happening to.
From when I worked at Microcenter ...
Customer: "Do you have Apple pro book chargers?"
Me: "Yes, what pro book do you have?"
Customer: "..."
Me: "Is it silver or white?"
Customer: "..."
Me: "Let's step over here to the computers on display. Point to the computer that looks like yours."
Customer points to 13" MBP.
Me: "Ok here is the 60 Watt MagSafe Adapter."
Customer: "How much is it?"
Me: "$79.00"
Customer: "Oh, I can get that on Amazon for $39 and it's just as good. Apple charges too much."
Me: "Ok, but you should probably buy three. The first won't work. The second one will stop working after a month. The third one will work but might catch fire so you should also probably make sure your homeowners is up to date."
I would have similar conversations about lightning cables, iPhone chargers, video adapters and on and on. Even when warned people were willing to accept risking damage to themselves, their devices or homes if it meant getting it at a low price point.
Customer: "Do you have Apple pro book chargers?"
Me: "Yes, what pro book do you have?"
Customer: "..."
Me: "Is it silver or white?"
Customer: "..."
Me: "Let's step over here to the computers on display. Point to the computer that looks like yours."
Customer points to 13" MBP.
Me: "Ok here is the 60 Watt MagSafe Adapter."
Customer: "How much is it?"
Me: "$79.00"
Customer: "Oh, I can get that on Amazon for $39 and it's just as good. Apple charges too much."
Me: "Ok, but you should probably buy three. The first won't work. The second one will stop working after a month. The third one will work but might catch fire so you should also probably make sure your homeowners is up to date."
I would have similar conversations about lightning cables, iPhone chargers, video adapters and on and on. Even when warned people were willing to accept risking damage to themselves, their devices or homes if it meant getting it at a low price point.
I understand that. That's why I said I don't buy Lightning cables from Amazon that are listed as "genuine OEM". Most of those listings look incredibly sketchy. That's why I only buy cables, chargers, and batteries from Anker on Amazon.
I would love to hear from Amazon on this issue. My overall opinion of Amazons credibility has dropped to E-Bay level.
...Because the OEM lightning cables are oh-so-very-resilient...????????
Again ... the problem isn't third-party accessories being counterfeit. It's that products being labeled as officially from Apple are counterfeit. I don't think you read the article.
Yup. 'ZY-T030' and similar can be found in so many gas stations. Besides look-alikes and knock-offs, several of those convenience store "tech accessories" have counterfeit or fake UL marks and numbers.