Ebay wins big in Tiffany fakes suit
A federal judge in New York ruled in favor of eBay Inc. on Monday in a suit filed by Tiffany & Co., which said eBay hadn't done enough to stop fake Tiffany jewelry from being sold on its site.
Tiffany filed the suit in 2004, and today's ruling is a major victory for San Jose-based eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY). The online auction site said Tiffany wouldn't work with it to try and stop counterfeit jewelry sales.
The judge, Richard Sullivan, said Tiffany hadn't done enough to prove eBay was responsible for the fake jewelry offered on its site. "Tiffany has failed to meet its burden in proving its claims," his opinion said.
Tiffany chose to sue the company, rather than the people selling the fake jewelry. Since eBay doesn't deliberately allow fraud on its site, and tries to remove any known fakes quickly, the judge ruled in eBay's favor.
In a statement, eBay said the ruling "establishes that protecting brands and trademarks is the primary burden of rights owners."
The ruling comes on the heels of a French decision that eBay must pay $60 million in a similar case involving luxury goods maker LVMH, which makes Louis Vuitton handbags.
A German appeals court ruled in April that eBay must take action to prevent the sale of fake Rolex watches.
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