Tokyo Court Fines Amazon Japan for Fake Sales

(MENAFN) A Tokyo court has ordered Amazon Japan to pay a penalty of 35 million yen (around $244,000) for facilitating the sale of counterfeit goods on its website. This significant verdict underscores the accountability of online marketplaces in safeguarding both sellers and buyers.

The Tokyo District Court determined that Amazon Japan did not do enough to stop the sale of bogus pulse oximeters – vital medical tools for measuring blood oxygen – even after being alerted to the problem. The court stated that Amazon neglected to remove fraudulent listings in 2021 despite knowing they were not genuine, a decision that ultimately harmed the sales of legitimate products.

The legal action was initiated by Try and E Co., the medical device manufacturer, and Excel Plan Co., its distributor. Although the plaintiffs sought 280 million yen in damages, the court only granted compensation to Excel Plan.

These imitation pulse oximeters were available on Amazon’s platform for roughly 10% less than the real ones, negatively impacting the genuine product’s prominence in Amazon's price-sensitive search results. The lawsuit alleged that when Excel Plan reported the issue and requested Amazon's assistance, the authentic listing was taken down instead of the fake ones.

"The ruling was a landmark in terms of acknowledging the obligation to build an appropriate (authentication) system, as businesses practically have no other option but to use platforms such as that of Amazon," commented a lawyer representing the plaintiffs.

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