Pinduoduo latest Chinese site added to US ‘notorious market’ list

Just in time for today's World Intellectual Property Day, Pinduoduo has become the latest Chinese ecommerce platform to be added to the US “notorious markets" list, which flags outlets that facilitate large-scale intellectual property infringement.

The Tencent Holdings-backed retailer, which is the third largest ecommerce site in China, is one of three Chinese ecommerce sites to feature on the list, which was released by the US Trade Representative’s Office (USTR) on Thursday as part of an annual review.

Other sites on the list include China’s largest ecommerce platform, Alibaba-owned Taobao, and B2B shopping site DHgate.com.

Pinduoduo has taken several measures to address the sale of counterfeit goods on its site, which has included partnering with brands to launch flagship stores, and investing in artificial intelligence tools that flag counterfeit products.

However, the USTR said in its report that counterfeit and pirated products “appear to remain widely available on the platform”, adding that measures taken by Pinduoduo “fell short of fully addressing the problem”.

A total of 33 online markets and 25 bricks-and-mortar markets featured on the list.

TVPlus, TVBrowser and Kuikan, which are reportedly operated by related companies in China to allow internet users to view unauthorised streams of films, TV and live events, were among several streaming apps flagged in the list.

The USTR also kept China on its priority watch list of physical markets for piracy and counterfeiting concerns.