Major IP Issues for Amazon Sellers
Are you a seller facing an intellectual property violation that’s come up suddenly? Noticed the recent surge in Amazon IP suspensions over the past few days? You are not alone. Amazon sellers have reported a major influx of suspended accounts from the specific department that handles IP infringements.
What Causes Intellectual Property Suspensions?
What’s the reason behind all of these IP related account suspensions? More importantly, why are both clearly innocent and extremely guilty sellers being suspended at the same time?
We’ve pinpointed some potential causes for this, but as of now, nothing is clear yet. It may be the recent wave of Chinese trademarks filed in the US, Bezos’ attempt to clean the marketplace of any and all counterfeiters before Prime Day 2018, or simply Amazon exerting their massive power.
Chinese Trademarks Filed in the US
A few days ago, the Wall Street Journal reported a massive rise in Chinese trademark filings in the United States.
“Huge numbers of Chinese citizens are seeking trademarks in the U.S., flooding the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office with applications that officials say appear to be rife with false information,” stated WSJ reporter Jacob Gershman in his May 5th article.
The USPTO was “alarmed” by this, so Amazon may be seeking to protect the marketplace ahead of time — even if innocent sellers get knocked off the platform, too. What’s more, with Prime Day 2018 coming up in just a few months, the last thing Bezos wants is to have any risk of counterfeit products that could jeopardize the buyer experience. Naturally, this would lower Prime Day sales overall.
As we receive more information, we will continue to post the latest updates on this difficult situation — stay tuned.