Another seller seems to be listing under many brands they dont own
I had another seller list one of my products, and when I looked at their storefront I found that nearly every listing seems to infringe on a brand that the seller does not own. I suppose this is known as "hijacking", but I am curious how the seller has not been removed yet. Am I incorrect in assuming that a 3rd party seller can't just add a generic product and sell it under my brand?
I do have brand registry, but my trademark is not quite finalized so I can't report counterfeit yet, but I'm surprised that so many other sellers haven't reported this guy selling under their brand as well. His storefront and listing are linked below. Its not legal for him to do this, right?
https://www.amazon.com/s?me=A3VH9ZIW3M4WUT&marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER
10 replies
Seller_kIukTwdhvntAp
I think you MIGHT be a little confused here.
Sellers can list on any ASINs that they have permission to sell.
I am in BR but only about a dozen or so of my 4000+ active items are mine.
I sell about a dozen (or more) other brands that I buy direct from the manufacturer or through authorized wholesale sources.
I looked at that page and they are selling a broad range of branded and 'generic' products as well as some under what appears to be their brand.
Looks pretty 'normal' to me at this point.
As to your product, is it listed as 'generic'? If so, there are new rules that might help you.
ADDED COMMENT --
I'm guessing you are talking about the Barn Ridge Woodcraft tube replacements.
About all you can do until the USPTO has granted the TM is do a test but.
As crazy as it sounds you would probably have better protection as "generic' now due to the Amazon insanity there!
Seller_kIukTwdhvntAp
Added comment -- you have a few months to wait for an approval --
Seller_7LrAV0m5llaI7
It's not. Hijacking is taking an existing listing, changing the brand owner, photos and description to another listing, while keeping all the ratings and reviews from the old listing for positive exposure.
As long as the items are genuine, not counterfeit, there isn't anything wrong here. If you do a test buy, and it's a genuine item, then if you want the listings to yourself, you have to tighten up your distribution.
Seller_kIukTwdhvntAp
What @Seller_7LrAV0m5llaI7noted here is really important --
"As long as the items are genuine, not counterfeit, there isn't anything wrong here. If you do a test buy, and it's a genuine item, then if you want the listings to yourself, you have to tighten up your distribution. "
I had one brand that was facing constant MAP violations and not much help from their wholesalers in tracking down the actual names and which distributors were selling to the violators.
They cut off ALL their distributors and only are selling direct now.
That way they can more easily find the below MAP sellers.
It has eliminated quite a bit of competition as a result as well since not all the guys (generic term!) I compete against can afford the minimum orders with the direct account, even though it's a pretty low number.
Significant enough though when you can just add five $7.50 items to a bigger order with multiple brands versus having to buy $500 from ONE brand!
If you wholesale be sure you have as iron clad contract as possible with MAP and sales restrictions on allowed sites if you want to do that.
JiAlex_Amazon
Hello Spearhead_Producst!
My name is JiAlex from the Community Manager team here on forums. I wanted to follow up on your post.
As peer sellers mentioned, you can do a test buy and confirm if the product is legit, and in case it is not, you as a Brand owner, can create an infringement claim or report a violation. You will need to make sure, you have added trademarks registered in the country of the selected Amazon store (e.g., com, co.uk., etc.).
Also, keep in mind, Amazon is an open marketplace. Rights holder authorization is not required to sell on Amazon, and we do not intervene in related contractual disputes.
For more information on how to create a report:
Report infringement intellectual property
Any assistance, don’t hesitate to reach out our support channel: https://sellercentral.amazon.com/help/center
Regards,
JiAlex
