eBay joins forces with the industry trust for ip awareness

eBay, the world’s largest online marketplace, has reaffirmed its stance against physical and digital copyright theft by becoming a member of the Industry Trust for IP Awareness Ltd.

Building on the ‘eBay Against Counterfeits’ campaign which launched in 2007, the partnership highlights eBay’s continued commitment to tackling copyright theft, which currently costs the British film and television industry £486million per year.

eBay will be lending its support to the Trust’s multi-channelled communications campaign, which aims to reach the one in three consumers who engage in copyright theft. The campaign uses TV advertising, online communications and PR to address illegal downloading and the production and sale of knock-off DVDs. It provides positive education around the role and value of copyright, while attaching a social stigma to copyright theft.

Richard Ambrose, Director of Trust and Safety for eBay in the UK, said: “We’re delighted to become a member of the Industry Trust, an organisation which is doing such important work to change attitudes toward copyright theft. Following the success of our anti-counterfeits campaign last year and our efforts over the past decade to prevent counterfeits from reaching our marketplace, we feel this is the logical next step for us in our ongoing commitment to tackling the global challenge of counterfeit goods.

“Knock-offs are bad for everyone - brands, eBay, consumers and genuine sellers - and their trade undermines the trust on which eBay is built. We are committed to playing our part in the battle to reduce them. However, we can’t tackle the problem alone and actively engage with Government, Rights Owners and law enforcement agencies to minimise the availability of knock-off products online. Our membership of the Industry Trust builds on these existing efforts to fight this global issue.”

In September 2007, eBay launched its ‘eBay Against Counterfeits’ campaign to limit the trade in counterfeits by educating users about how and why to avoid knock-offs. It is supported by eBay’s Verified Rights Owner programme (VeRO), which enables 18,000 Rights Owners to report items they believe to be counterfeit so that eBay can remove them from the site.

Liz Bales, Director-General of the Industry Trust, said: “eBay has already demonstrated its commitment to tackling copyright theft, so we’re delighted to welcome them as a member of the Industry Trust. They will be a valued asset in our ongoing behaviour change campaign.”