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Germany Orders Amazon To Stop Taking Advantage of People Who Can't Spell 'Birkenstock' (qz.com)
Germany has barred Amazon from drawing in online shoppers who misspell iconic German sandal maker Birkenstock in their Google searchers. "Amazon reportedly won business for common Birkenstock misspellings by booking variants like 'Brikenstock,' 'Bierkenstock,' and 'Birkenstok' in Google AdWords, so that they produced search results for shoes sold in Amazon.com," reports Quartz. From the report: According to Reuters, Birkenstock turned to the court because it feared shoppers might unwittingly buy shoddy counterfeits, which could damage its brand reputation. "For us, Amazon is complicit," Birkenstock chief Oliver Reichert told German magazine Der Spiegel, according to Reuters. Birkenstock first walked away from Amazon.com in July 2016. Besieged by counterfeits and rogue merchants, the company said it would no longer supply products to Amazon for U.S. customers starting Jan. 1, 2017. "The Amazon marketplace, which operates as an 'open market,' creates an environment where we experience unacceptable business practices which we believe jeopardize our brand," David Kahan, Birkenstock's CEO for the Americas, wrote in a memo at the time.
A year later, Kahan denounced Amazon in a lengthy memo for attempting to get Birkenstock retailers to sell it their inventory, even though the company had explicitly removed its sandals from Amazon.com in the U.S. "I share in no uncertain terms that this is unacceptable and will not be tolerated," Kahan wrote. "[A]ny Authorized retailer who may do this for even a single pair will be closed FOREVER."
A year later, Kahan denounced Amazon in a lengthy memo for attempting to get Birkenstock retailers to sell it their inventory, even though the company had explicitly removed its sandals from Amazon.com in the U.S. "I share in no uncertain terms that this is unacceptable and will not be tolerated," Kahan wrote. "[A]ny Authorized retailer who may do this for even a single pair will be closed FOREVER."
I've seen counterfeit Samsung chargers, there is probably other stuff.
Alibaba is owned by some sleazy Chinese
They sell counterfeits
Amazon is owned by an Outstanding American Super-Billionaire who told us he won't sell counterfeits
"Amazon reportedly won business for common Birkenstock misspellings by booking variants like 'Birkenstock,' 'Bierkenstock,' and 'Birkenstok' in Google AdWords"
Slasdot editors are evidently unable to properly misspell Birkenstock.
Really, the court ruling is idiotic. If Amazon cannot book those words, some counterfeiter will. And what permutations, exactly, counts as a misspelling? What about other names, where there are many legitimate spellings?
That said, Amazon has really shot itself in the foot with it's 3rd party marketplace. It is increasingly difficult to sort out the crap, the potential crap, and the legitimate products. Personally, and precisely for this reason, I order a lot less from Amazon than I used to.
Enjoy life! This is not a dress rehearsal.
Wow, it's so good I can even tell the difference in the first variant!
Wear real shoes people, they protect your toes.
Is the part where Amazon bought AdWords for common misspellings in much the same way malware authors buy commonly misspelled AdWords Amazon's fault, though?
Read it carefully if it looks confusing to you.
This is what slashdot has come to ... I'm pretty sure that slashdots best moment was the 9-11 coverage. It actually showed what community/social media could do. Oh well... get off my lawn!
Zoid.com
You must be old, because you haven't been on an American college campus in awhile.
The Burka is a symbol of tolerance, diversity and womans' liberation.
If you disagree, you're a racist cis-gendered islamophobe.
No, it's the part where third-party sellers bought the misspelled keywords, and the ignorant Schweinhund at Birkenstock blames Amazon for it.
You have to admit that those two spellings are very close indeed.
Why is it shoes and cosmetics are obsessed with price fixing? We had this debase with grey marketing many times before.
It goes like this - you are not allowed to sell that pair of shoes for less that $80. Most countries ban this anti competitive practice.Cameras watches and i Phones are also price fixed to extents, including controlling spare parts.
Price fixing means you - the consumer pays more, and probably geolocation price fixing as well. Authorized re-seller is just a code word to control prices though treats of dealership cancellation, which is why Birkenstock made that promise.
You see real outlet stores have to pay for shopfronts and sales staff And the other rule is they don't want alternative choices displayed next to theirs. Lastly franchise license fees can go off to an untaxed tax haven, mostly.
Amazon devalues brand names - really simple. No storefront means consumers get a cheaper price for a standardised product, while Amazon rakes off a slice. Physical store sales slump, some go out of business, brand awareness declines.You wont see Coke and Pepsi displayed in the same outlet if they have their way.
The bit about fakes is just noise and makeup. Amazon wants to greymarket supply it cannot get, and cannot induce retailers to sell.
I think any brandname vendor who refuses to sell openly should be hit with a sales tax, say 100%, before state tax is applied.
Interesting but very confusing summary.
The question is not whether dumb people deserve to get ripped off. The question is whether Birkenstock deserves to lose those sales. Anti-counterfeiting laws are not meant to protect customers (even if that's how they are sold to the public).
What does puzzle me a bit, though, is how Birkenstock can prohibit certified Birkenstock retailers from selling on Amazon, and threaten to close them forever if they do. Wouldn't that run afoul of a bunch of competition laws?
I like to think of someone wearing a burka as an inversion of a naked person wearing sunglasses. ymmv.
Requiem for the American Dream
A company that thinks they're going to teach Amazon a lesson by not selling their products there makes the same mistake small shop owners make by not moving away when a Walmart opens down the street. Very noble and for a minute it may work, but sooner than later the business dies because customer loyalty is fragile, especially on things worth at most $100-$200.
For instance I like Garmin GPS products, but when I want a new GPS device I'm not going to fuck around browsing individual websites and opening accounts right and left and dealing with weird shipping rules, I go on Amazon. If there's no Garmin there I'll give another brand a chance because my loyalty doesn't trump the convenience of just adding it to a shopping cart full of other stuff already connected to my credit card and shipping info.
Those birkenstock people are not gonna win.
lucm, indeed.
For instance I like Garmin GPS products, but when I want a new GPS device I'm not going to fuck around browsing individual websites and opening accounts right and left and dealing with weird shipping rules, I go on Amazon. If there's no Garmin there I'll give another brand a chance because my loyalty doesn't trump the convenience of just adding it to a shopping cart full of other stuff already connected to my credit card and shipping info.
I'm almost the polar opposite. Once Ive fonud a product I want, I'll go where I can get it. I figure that if it's above a certain amount and I'm going to be using it a lot, then the time saved by getting a good quality one that I know will work and I know how to use will trump the one off cost of 3 to 4 minutes required to buy it from not amazon.
SJW n. One who posts facts.
I figure that if it's above a certain amount and I'm going to be using it a lot, then the time saved by getting a good quality one that I know will work and I know how to use will trump the one off cost of 3 to 4 minutes required to buy it from not amazon.
Then I guess we just have a different "certain amount" threshold. And it takes more than an extra 3-4 minutes when you have to deal with accounts, shipping and all that on top of having to find the product. Plus that's one more site likely to have their customer database pwned because they didn't configure mongo or s3 properly, or because they used an old unpatched struts or wordpress.
I don't think I'd buy a minivan on Amazon, but a $100 or $200 thing, that's a no-brainer.
lucm, indeed.
It's the same for fashion items. Brands are not interchangeable. Apple phones are an example that nerds might be familiar with. There are loads of other phones but people want an Apple specifically and won't just buy whatever is easily available.
const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
The original was typed by hard working German craftsmen, and the imposter was typed by a Chinese sweatshop worker who can't even spell in English or German.
If you think I voted for Trump because of this post, you're wrong. I voted for Dr. Jill Stein of the Green Party. Again.
So Birkenstock does not supply or Authorize sale of its brand through Amazon but see lots of footwear available with multiple offers. They could be authentic just gray not thru authorized channels or knockoffs made 3rd shift in cheap foreign country in same factory or nearby with lower quality. If gray tough luck for BS someone found in market and reselling. If knockoffs then Hope BS has stronger case. What is curious is why Amazon advertising if no support from BS? Are the gray stores or knockoffs supporting? Or Amazon trying to pressure BS into an arrangement? Seems knockoffs should offer some recourse for BS but why doesnâ(TM)t BS procure the misspelling ads?
Then I guess we just have a different "certain amount" threshold. And it takes more than an extra 3-4 minutes when you have to deal with accounts, shipping and all that on top of having to find the product.
Not my experience. Many vendors, most I'd say seem to let you check out as a guest, so there's no wrangling of accounts or anything.
Click on product, press "buy", enter address and CC info and done!
SJW n. One who posts facts.
The Birkenstock crowd has a rep for being the laid-back hippie Earthmother types. This guy sounds like he's engaged in a scorched-earth battle with Amazon and is willing to burn down anyone else who gets in his way.
What does puzzle me a bit, though, is how Birkenstock can prohibit certified Birkenstock retailers from selling on Amazon, and threaten to close them forever if they do. Wouldn't that run afoul of a bunch of competition laws?
Manufacturers can sell to whoever they want, as long as they don't discriminate based against any of the protected groups (race, religion, sex, age, etc). They can simply say "if you sell through Amazon, we will not longer sell to you". They are of course free to buy retail and re-sell on Amazon, but it doesn't make sense anymore. I've dealt with this in the past with manufacturers who set their prices based on country, and for the very same goods would charge as much as 3x depending on the destination country. There it makes sense to buy a trainload of shoes, for example, destined to a country where the shoes are cheaper, and then resell those shoes in countries where the price is 3x. This happens, but the re-sellers are very careful because if they caught selling to such "grey market" they lose their re-seller status. I've dealt with this in pre-Amazon days with shoes and once with cars as you used to be able to get away with it some small scale, but nowadays the manufacturers are viciously tracking this types of sales, so all re-sellers are scared.
The Birkenstock crowd has a rep for being the laid-back hippie Earthmother types. This guy sounds like he's engaged in a scorched-earth battle with Amazon and is willing to burn down anyone else who gets in his way.
No, he sounds like a guy fed up with unsatisfied consumers who bought "beercanstocks" thinking they were authentic, which will damage a reputable brand and product.
And if the manufacturer allegedly stopped selling valid product to Amazon US customers a year ago, no wonder he's pissed. Amazon hasn't done jack shit to deter counterfeiters from selling knock-offs. There's a fucking Birkenstock Amazon store which features their logo, valid photos, obscene prices (one pair had a $130 - 817.78 price range?!), and plenty of reviews warning people about fakes.
Even hippies have their limits. Everyone does.
In Germany all commercial sellers have to register with the tax office. They get a ID and have to pay VAT. Foreign sellers have to do the same when selling goods in Germany via Amazon. Still most Chinese sellers neither register nor pay VAT. That's clearly tax fraud and an offence. Since Amazon doesn't check if the Chinese sellers have a valid German tax ID if they wan't to sell their goods in Germany, Amazon is aiding the tax fraud. It's time that Amazon is held responsible for that.
Taxes are for the plebs who can't launder their income through Ireland. Obscenely rich people don't pay those; they use their tax money to buy governments instead.
Besides, it's obviously more important for Bezos to wear the Richest Asshole crown.
Manufacturers can sell to whoever they want, as long as they don't discriminate based against any of the protected groups (race, religion, sex, age, etc).
Are you sure? I'm sure they get away with it quite often, but that's not the same as saying the practice is legal. :)
Afaik, manufacturers (or brand owners, if you will) can't dictate re-seller prices, etc. This is anti competitive behavior. Yes, they often get away with it, and yes, it's hard to prosecute. And no, I'm not a lawyer
Mostly right, but in the US and the various States, there are laws that limit manufacturers' ability to having vertical pricing arrangements. Specifically, an agreement in restraint of trade is unlawful even though a unilateral (and universal) vertical pricing policy is lawful. Also lawful are manufacturer-imposed "territories", which is a bit confusing.
Here's some guidance from the Federal Trade Commission and a recent Supreme Court Ruling.
Manufacturers can sell to whoever they want, as long as they don't discriminate based against any of the protected groups (race, religion, sex, age, etc.
RETAILERS can sell to whoever they want, as long as they don't discriminate based against any of the protected groups (race, religion, sex, age, etc) as well. Birkenstock might get to set pricing, but they don't get to dictate customer relationships.
Also, I'm curious if the AdWords campaign is being done by Amazon corporate office, or one of the people who list stuff on their site. If so, it's not really under Amazon's control.
There is a whole spectrum of knock-offs. What of the counterfeit goods that are the exact same as the genuine article, but just made after hours and lacking the blessing of its IP overlord?
If those identical goods can sell for a price, sometimes drastically, below the real deal, it shows that profits are being protected, not consumers.
...
Amazon reportedly won business for common Birkenstock misspellings by booking variants like 'Birkenstock,'
Maybe I'm blind, but I can't see any difference in those two highlighted words... Heckuva good summary there, Beau!
Browsing at +1 - no ACs, I ignore their posts. So refreshing!
Let's extend that thought... After all, those Chinese sellers wouldn't sell in the first place if the German consumers didn't buy without first demanding proof of legal registration. So clearly they are responsible as well. And what about DHL/FedEx/UPS/DeutschePost? They clearly delivered a product without ensuring the VAT is properly collected and shipped, so they are also responsible. And those roads used to transport said goods? Why, the paving company must pay as well! In fact, let's just demand everyone on Germany pay another €1000 per year as penalty for their offences!
Browsing at +1 - no ACs, I ignore their posts. So refreshing!
But should a company have free reign to sell knock offs, using the same brand name, especially when not sanctioned by original company. As a customer I get deceived about product and quality and as the original company there is trademark infringement.
Jumpstart the tartan drive.
The situation is a bit more nuanced, and I think it is possible birkenstock is more concerned about non-counterfeit items. Specifically from 3rd party resellers.
There are small resellers which buy from liquidators, and sell the items at a lower price. Think about Ross stores, but just some random seller on Amazon. This creates a messy situation, for the manufacturer (birkenstock), and of course the buyers.
1. There are items from actual authorized resellers (or the manufacturer directly)
2. There are items from 3rd party resellers, who bought at a discount (end of season, black friday, etc)
3. There are items, which are authentic, but defective. (returns, misprints, typos, etc). These are problematic, since they could not be marked such, but sold as new.
4. There are counterfeit items.
I think category 3 is the worst for the brand. You'd get a defective item which should not have been sold, and will blame the brand when it fails early, or when it looks a bit off.
And I think category 2 is bad for keeping the "premium" prices. An item that is out of season, and was supposed to be off the shelves will be competing with the new offerings. They are both real, and authentic. So why would people pay $120, instead of getting the $60 one?
Anyway, there is a lot of concern for the manufacturer, so for many brands, Amazon just restricts the sale. (new release Disney items for example).
What does puzzle me a bit, though, is how Birkenstock can prohibit certified Birkenstock retailers from selling on Amazon, and threaten to close them forever if they do. Wouldn't that run afoul of a bunch of competition laws?
Probably for the same reason we have "prescription cat food". It's not actually illegal for you to sell it to someone who lacks a "prescription", it's just that if you do, the manufacturer won't sell it to you wholesale anymore. (In return, vets prescribe it; they get extra exam business from the people who need prescriptions, and they generate business ultimately for the manufacturer.)
Businesses do collude, all the time, and often get away with it.
Customer loyalty lasts right up until the next sale.
Never underestimate the power of "keeping up with the Joneses". For most Americans, price is king with quality a distant second, mainly because most Americans can't afford quality.
~X~
Such contracts are the reason why you get the incredibly annoying "add the product to the cart to see the sale price"
Many manufacturers use cheaper parts and looser quality control for products destined for lower price point markets. Often the only indication is a single letter on the model number. The manufacturers don't want these models to end up in the higher price point markets, eating at their profits and soiling their reputation. It is a scam they play on the developing world that sometimes ends up biting them in the ass
"counterfeit goods that are the exact same as the genuine article" only happens for rebranded off-the-shelf parts/products. Manufacturers would have to be incredibly stupid to risk lawsuits and loosing business by producing custom parts/products "after hours" for the gray/black markets
You know, you don't get any extra points for following me round to gainsay every single thing I comment-about
When your mom told you that you're special and that everyone remembers you, she was lying.
lucm, indeed.
Dude we're not talking about Faberge eggs or Picasso paintings, this is about $50 sandals. Get a life.
lucm, indeed.
Interestingly, Lush Cosmetics has a lot in common with Birkenstock.
Amazon = $136,000,000,000 annual revenue, 540,000 employees, invented cloud computing, host Netflix and CIA servers
Birkenstock = $500,000,000 annual revenue, 4,000 employees, sell sandals, run their website on a shared shopping cart service
Lush Cosmetics = $300,000,000 annual revenue, 3,000 employees, sell cosmetics, run their website on the same shared shopping cart service as Birkenstock
lucm, indeed.
In some markets, yes.
People who would buy and wear Birkenstocks for sure deserve to get ripped off. But really in the end this hissy fit is pointless; Google would end up directing the misspellings mostly to the correct spelling anyway.
That's the backroom deal. He gets the pardon. He's not going to pardon himself. And why the insult? Obviously I was referring to the presidential pardoning power, so why would you think you had to both tell me about it and insult me while doing so?
I don't know if Trump will complete his term, but if I could bet I would easily go with yes.
"variants like 'Birkenstock,' 'Bierkenstock,' and 'Birkenstok'" ...
That first mis-spelling is "B-R-I-Kenstock". Mind you, you're not the only one, it's taken me 10 minutes to realise what was going on
Don't blame me, it's usually 2 in the morning when I post
Well, a big problem with paying for quality is that you often end up with the same crappy low-quality item, just marked way up. This goes double for buying off of Amazon which is full of sketchy third-party sellers and counterfeits, and with the way Amazon does its fulfillment, you don't know what you're going to get and from where until it arrives on your doorstep.
So you might as well buy on price. You likely will end up with a cheap piece of crap, but at least you got what you paid for.