Launched in September 2022, the Chinese online sales platform Temu is already the subject of lawsuits. In question, the violation of copyright and copies of photos and texts of products offered for sale on Amazon, according to US media reports cabling.
Like Shein or Wish, Temu’s business strategy is based on selling low-priced, unbranded products, most of which come from China. Temu is trying to break into the US market and compete with Amazon with aggressive discounts and has even pressured sellers in its own chain to lower their prices.
Thus, Amazon sellers discovered that Temu had put their products up for sale, without their knowledge and without their authorization, using the photos and texts published on Amazon. And the prices are well below the asking price.
The media cabling reviewed dozens of cases where Amazon sellers in China claim to have found their products on the app, and many of these cases appear to be confirmed. Those affected say they complained to Temu and asked for the images to be removed, to no avail.
Spread the word on social media
One of them, David, questioned by cablingapproached Temu directly, repeatedly, receiving similar responses each time: the platform can’t do anything because it can’t verify if David owns the images and text.
On Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, and on The Little Red Book, a Chinese fashion platform, many Amazon sellers complain of having a similar experience. Most of them stumbled upon their listings by accident or sought an explanation after seeing a sudden drop in their sales.
Complaints against Temu are timid, especially from independent sellers too busy with inventory management, customer service, or logistics.
ongoing complaints
However, some big Amazon sellers have already started legal action against Temu. In May, the owner of FitBeast, a sports equipment brand, sued Temu for copyright infringement in an Illinois court in the United States. Temu was selling a copy of the FitBeast exercise equipment for $5, while a FitBeast sells for $25.99 on Amazon.
In May, Wham-O Holding, which owns the “Frisbee” trademark, sued several Chinese sellers of Temu for trademark infringement. They used the word “frisbee” in their ads;
For its part, Amazon reacted to Wired: “We strongly condemn this type of activity. If a brand believes that information or images from its Amazon products are copied and used to sell counterfeit products elsewhere, we encourage it to communicate with our unit in charge of the fight against counterfeiting”.
The Temu app has been available in France since April. Temu was launched by a holding company that operates its Chinese “sister app,” Pinduoduo online sales platform. But in early April, the Pinoduoduo app, which has become very popular in the United States, has been fixed by cybersecurity experts, who warn of its ability to spy on large amounts of data.
Source: BFM TV
