eBay Loses Court Case To Louis Vuitton
February 12, 2010
The Paris District Court ruled today that eBay is liable for harming the reputation of luxury goods maker Louis Vuitton through its use of trademarks, company name and domain name.
The Paris court has ordered eBay to stop using keywords which harm the reputation of the Louis Vuitton brand to promote its sites and will impose penalties of $1,372 (1,000 euros) for future violations.
"Louis Vuitton welcomes this decision, which confirms established case law that aims to protect the consumer from the illicit use of company trademarks," said Nathalie Moull-Berteaux, Global Intellectual Property Director of Louis Vuitton.
The court also ordered eBay to pay $274,407 (200,000 euros) in damages to Louis Vuitton. eBay has also been ordered to pay $41,161 (30,000 euros) to reimburse the legal costs of Luis Vuitton.
"This case is about the use of Adwords to direct buyers' listings for authentic goods from eBay sellers," said Yohan Ruso, director general of eBay France.
"This issue is being used by certain Rights Owners as an excuse to retain total control of what people can buy, where they can buy it from, and how much they have to pay. This is why 750,000 Europeans signed a petition to the European Parliament last year, protesting barriers to Internet trade."
eBay Fined $2.6 Million Over LVMH Sales
December 1, 2009
If a French court has its way, eBay will soon have to fork over $2.6 million. The fine stems from a ban on the sale (or purchase) of LVMH goods, and actually ties to a case that ended in eBay being told to pay LVMH $61 million.
LVMH, which is the entity behind luxury brands like Louis Vuitton, Tag Heuer, and De Beers, won a major case against eBay in June of last year. LVMH claimed to be concerned about the sale of counterfeit merchandise, and eBay was supposed to keep all related items off its French site as a result.
Apparently eBay wasn't completely successful, however (misspelled listings may have created problems), hence the latest fine.
Now, Alex von Schirmeister, the general manager of eBay in France, has stated, "We believe that the higher courts will overturn this ruling and ensure that eCommerce companies such as eBay will continue to provide a platform for buyers and sellers to trade authentic goods.
von Schirmeister also said, "The fine itself is disproportionate given that eBay complied with the Injunction. It is out of step with our legal victories in France, UK, Germany, Belgium and the U.S."
Look for further developments down the road, then, as eBay appeals the ruling.
Have You Read This?
> eBay Collects Another Win Against L'Oreal
> eBay Wins French Ruling Over L'Oreal Fakes
eBay Fined $2.6 Million Over LVMH Sales
December 1, 2009
If a French court has its way, eBay will soon have to fork over $2.6 million. The fine stems from a ban on the sale (or purchase) of LVMH goods, and actually ties to a case that ended in eBay being told to pay LVMH $61 million.
LVMH, which is the entity behind luxury brands like Louis Vuitton, Tag Heuer, and De Beers, won a major case against eBay in June of last year. LVMH claimed to be concerned about the sale of counterfeit merchandise, and eBay was supposed to keep all related items off its French site as a result.
Apparently eBay wasn't completely successful, however (misspelled listings may have created problems), hence the latest fine.
Now, Alex von Schirmeister, the general manager of eBay in France, has stated, "We believe that the higher courts will overturn this ruling and ensure that eCommerce companies such as eBay will continue to provide a platform for buyers and sellers to trade authentic goods.
von Schirmeister also said, "The fine itself is disproportionate given that eBay complied with the Injunction. It is out of step with our legal victories in France, UK, Germany, Belgium and the U.S."
Look for further developments down the road, then, as eBay appeals the ruling.
Have You Read This?
> eBay Collects Another Win Against L'Oreal
> eBay Wins French Ruling Over L'Oreal Fakes
