Faced scrunity by selling counterfeited products online, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (BABA) said it removed 90 million listings that may have breached IP laws, according to Bloomberg.
The fake product listings were taken down across Alibaba’s e-commerce platforms through September this year, Chief Risk Officer Polo Shao said at a press conference in Hangzhou today. Alibaba, which raised a record $25 billion in an initial public offering in September, said it spent $160.7 million from the beginning of 2013 through last month to block counterfeit products and boost consumer protection.
The strategy is part of Alibaba’s plan to build its reputation now that the company is larger in market value than General Electric Co. (GE) and Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) Controlling the sales of fake and pirated goods will be crucial in maintaining credibility with investors and limiting risks of lawsuits.
“Selling counterfeits has been one of the key criticisms that Alibaba has faced,” said Vanessa Zeng, an analyst at Forrester Research Inc. (FORR) in Beijing. “Even though the company’s shares have done well, it doesn’t mean that Alibaba isn’t aware of the risks down the road.”
China’s largest e-commerce company, based in Hangzhou, has gained 60 percent since its IPO, compared with a 0.9 percent decline in the NYSE Composite Index.
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