FCC Tells Amazon, eBay -- Knock Off The Counterfeits

Counterfeits exacerbate the theft of billions of dollars in American innovation and creativity.

July 12, 2018 - Los Angeles, CA – For the second time this year, Amazon and eBay have come under fire from a Federal Agency for the sale of counterfeit goods. Federal Communications Commission ("FCC") Director Michael O'Rielly sent a letter to Amazon's CEO, Jeff Bezos, and eBay's CEO, Devin Wenig, telling each to knock off the counterfeits.

Specifically, the Director writes; "certain manufacturers of video television set-top boxes are either failing to comply with Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) equipment authorization requirements or falsely using FCC branding on their devices." Additionally, "they are perpetrating intellectual property theft and consumer fraud... Many of these sellers are attempting to distribute their non-compliant products through online marketplaces such as yours" adds Director O'Rielly.

The FCC Director also expressed concern that the counterfeit and non-compliant set-top devices contained malware and were being used to illegally stream copyrighted content, exacerbating the theft of billions of dollars in American innovation and creativity.

Financial news specialist 24/7 Wall Street highlights TechCrunch research on one of the most popular devices available to enable piracy of streaming content -- Amazon’s own Fire TV stick. Using an open source library called Kodi, it is possible to steal streaming content, and Amazon sells a number of Kodi devices (search words “kodi box”) as well as a tutorial on how to install Kodi on a Fire TV stick. "Despite its commitment to target devices that allow users to steal content, Amazon is apparently willing to do exactly what it’s asked by the FCC and nothing more" adds 24/7 Wall St.

Amazon and eBay's shady counterfeit practices have not escaped the attention of federal investigators. The U.S. Government Accountability Office ("GAO") recently conducted an undercover investigation of e-commerce counterfeit goods sales. The GAO reported that about 50% of the items it purchased from e-commerce websites, including Amazon and eBay, were counterfeit. The report was forwarded to Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) for a full U.S. Senate Committee hearing on March 6, 2018.

The Counterfeit Report®, an award winning counterfeit awareness and consumer advocate, has also alerted the U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") about counterfeit and fraudulently labeled medical devices and OTC drugs, and the FBI and Attorney General on counterfeit FBI, Secret Service and police badges with accompanying ID, offered on Amazon and eBay.

Everyone knows selling counterfeits is illegal, yet through huge legal loopholes, and virtually immune to prosecution, IP laws and safety standards, Amazon and eBay continue to enable and facilitate criminal activity, and profit from counterfeit sales which destroy manufacturers and directly impact consumer safety, jobs and public trust.