Thursday, September 16, 2010

Tiffany Takes On Ebay... And Ebay Wins

Don't mess with Ebay
(no really, don't mess with Ebay)
After a 6 years of litigation, the Federal court just ruled against Tiffany & Co. on all counts in their lawsuit against Ebay.
From National Jewlery
Ebay Prevails on Final Claim in Tiffany Lawsuit

New York—A federal judge has again ruled in eBay's favor in its ongoing legal battle with luxury retailer Tiffany & Co., rejecting the latter's false advertising claim against the online auction site.

The Tiffany-eBay case dates back to 2004, when Tiffany first filed suit against eBay charging it with trademark infringement, unfair competition, false advertising and trademark dilution. The allegations arose from the jewelry retailer's own investigations of "Tiffany" pieces sold on eBay in 2004 and 2005. Those surveys found that between 73 and 75 percent of items listed as genuine Tiffany merchandise were counterfeits.

I can certainly understand why Tiffany initiated the lawsuit, but really, did they really think that they could stop the Tiffany name from being used on Ebay?  That would have been like stopping a volcano from erupting.

Still, I do think that when it comes to jewelry on Ebay, caveat emptor.
There are lots of fakes on Ebay. 


And on the subject of Tiffany, do you like the new line of Tiffany leather goods?
This clutch is nice, as it should be for $1,195. 
Of course if I needed this type of look I would buy a much less expensive bag 
and then add a vintage brooch  from Beladora.
But that's just moi