"Counterfeit and pirated goods from China, together with
transshipped goods from China to Hong Kong, accounted for 75% of
the value of counterfeit and pirated goods seized by U.S.
Customs and Border Protection in 2021," the U.S. government's
latest report on "notorious markets" added.
The U.S. government identified 39 online markets and 33 physical
markets that reportedly engage in or facilitate substantial
trademark counterfeiting or copyright piracy.
"This includes continuing to identify the WeChat e-commerce
ecosystem as one of the largest platforms for counterfeit goods
in China," it added.
WeChat is China's most popular chat app with more than a billion
active users and is owned by Chinese technology firm Tencent
Holdings Limited.
The report alleged WeChat provided an e-commerce ecosystem that
facilitated the distribution and sale of counterfeit products to
users of the overall WeChat platform.
China-based online markets AliExpress, Baidu Wangpan, DHGate,
Pinduoduo and Taobao also remain part of the notorious markets
list, along with seven physical markets in China "that
increasingly use brick-and-mortar storefronts to support online
sales of counterfeits," the USTR office said on Tuesday.
The U.S. government added e-commerce sites operated by Tencent
and Chinese tech giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd to its
notorious markets list in early 2022.
"The Notorious Markets List is an important tool that urges the
private sector and our trading partners to take action against
these harmful practices," Tai said on Tuesday.
The Chinese government said at the time it did not agree with
the U.S. government's decision to include some e-commerce sites
in the list, calling the action "irresponsible."
Tencent also said at the time it strongly disagreed with the
decision and Alibaba had said it will continue working with
government agencies to address concerns about intellectual
property protection across its platforms.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Josie
Kao)
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