E-commerce conglomerate Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, which has been criticised for counterfeit goods sold on its online platforms, said on Tuesday that it removed 6 million listings that may have breached intellectual property rights during the first three quarters of this year.
The Hangzhou-based company, which had a record-breaking initial public offering of $25 billion in September in New York, said it invested more than 1 billion yuan ($160 million) between Jan 1 2013 and Nov 30 2014 to crack down on fake goods and protect the rights of online shoppers.
Shao Xiaofeng, chief risk officer of Alibaba, said in a press conference that the company would further improve its technology and boost the use of big data in order to track down those who sell counterfeit goods on Alibaba's various online platforms. The data and information will be shared with other parties, such as government organizations, to step up efforts in fighting fake goods.
The company said that more than 2,000 of its employees shoulder the task of seeking out fake goods and protecting consumer rights.
Alibaba said it would add another 200 people to the team to improve the effectiveness of its fight against fake goods online next year.
The Alibaba effort is seen as part of the company's strategy to improve its reputation as a global Internet giant.
Analysts said that as a listed company with a global strategy to connect Chinese buyers with overseas merchants, it is necessary for Alibaba to clear its name, which has been tarnished by fake goods and intellectual property rights issues.
Alibaba's share price has surged by about 60 percent after its initial public offering in September. But in its IPO prospectus, the company warned potential investors that it could come under fire for alleged counterfeit activity.
Taobao was labeled as a "notorious marketplace" with "widespread activity of counterfeit goods" by the Office of the US Trade Representative between 2008 and 2011. It was removed from the list in 2012 for its "notable efforts" to crack down on counterfeit goods.
Even so, some products sold on Alibaba's Tmall platform during China's Nov 11 online shopping festival have been confirmed as counterfeit products by the State Administration for Industry and Commerce in China during a recent quality check.
Wang Xiaoxing, the analyst with Analysys International, said that many e-commerce companies that allow third-party vendors to sell on their platforms find it challenging to control the quality of goods sold online.
"Alibaba has already made improvements in fighting fake goods by launching increasingly stiff policies to punish wrongdoers.
However, it is difficult for the company itself to guard all the possible channels of selling fake goods. After all, on Alibaba's Taobao platform alone, there are more than 8 million vendors," said Wang.
"With the fierce competition in the online shopping market, those who sell fake products will find it difficult to survive.
But more importantly, the government needs to introduce more policies and regulations to make sure there is no way to sell fake goods online," he said.
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