For a long time, when doing business overseas, especially in developed countries in Europe and America, infringement is a problem that needs to be paid attention to.

Developed countries in Europe and the United States have a strong sense of copyright, which has been engraved in the genes of the public. Since its establishment, Amazon has always attached great importance to the issue of intellectual property infringement, adhering to the business philosophy of "customer first", ensuring that the products purchased by consumers on Amazon are authorized products, that is, there is no risk of infringement. Amazon has always been committed to building a fair and transparent business environment and providing consumers with a safer and healthier shopping environment.

Therefore, Amazon calls on every seller to pay attention to infringement issues. Even if intellectual property rights are violated without knowing it, Amazon will still take measures, and your account may be warned or suspended.

Recently, I have received many questions from sellers and friends about copyright infringement in the background. Today, Douxiaobao will give you an in-depth introduction to copyright infringement and how to deal with related complaints. Please note that this article is only for knowledge sorting. If the seller has specific questions, please consult a professional lawyer.

1. Introduction and types of copyright

Copyright is the legal protection of an original work to prevent others from copying it without permission.

Creative works covered by copyright law include: videos, films, songs, books, musical compositions, video games and paintings, among others.

In general, copyright law is designed to incentivize the creation of original works for the public interest. To receive copyright protection, a work must have been created by its author, and a certain degree of independent effort must have been exercised in creating the work. The author of an original work usually owns the copyright to that work.

In some countries, copyright owners can protect copyright material by registering with a particular country's copyright office. You can generally use your own copyrighted images to sell products on Amazon Seller Central product detail pages; however, you should not obtain images from other sources and add them to product detail pages without the permission of the rights owner.

Copyright infringement refers to: the seller uploads the original works of the copyright owner to the product details page without the authorization of the copyright owner.

2. The most common types of copyright infringement on Amazon – pictures and text

The most common copyright infringements on Amazon are mainly divided into 2 categories: image copyright and text copyright.

1. Image copyright infringement

Image copyright infringement mainly refers to the unauthorized use of images displayed on product images and on A+ pages. At the same time, the use of patterns, cartoon images or caricature images on the product itself without the authorization of the right owner may also directly constitute infringement of the product itself.

Tips for self-inspection of image infringement:

Is the product pattern and design itself infringing? It is recommended that sellers check whether the patterns and designs on the products have been protected by intellectual property rights before launching new products.

Is the angle and method of shooting the picture very similar to others? It is recommended that sellers check whether the shooting ideas are too similar before updating product images. If similar products are taken at the same shooting angle, shooting method, shooting background and even decorations, they may be complained by the copyright owner for infringement.

Is the image containing a picture or drawing licensed? It is recommended that sellers carefully check the image content contained in the picture before updating the product picture. If the content of the picture taken by oneself contains other pictures or paintings, but these pictures and paintings have not been authorized by the right holder, this will also constitute infringement. This is also a place that sellers tend to ignore, so pay more attention.

2. Text copyright infringement

Text infringement generally occurs in the title of the product details page, the five-point description of the product, and the copywriting infringement on the A+ page.

Text infringement self-examination tips:

Is the copywriting of the product original? It is recommended that sellers conduct self-examination to avoid infringement caused by plagiarism and copywriting from peers. If the A+ page contains video, has the creator's permission to use it been sought? Is the combination of A+ picture text plus picture content original by the seller?

3. Sharing of Copyright Infringement Cases

1. Image copyright infringement

the case

Seller A wants to launch a new water cup, so he goes to a certain designer’s website, takes a screenshot of his favorite cartoon image, changes the color, and prints the pattern on his product. Is seller A right?

No! Seller A is not the original author of the cartoon image, so he does not own the copyright of the work. In the absence of authorization, only modifying the color matching of the cartoon image also has a very high risk of copyright infringement.

2. Text copyright infringement

the case

Seller A searched for product descriptions of peers in order to get copywriting inspiration, and intercepted a paragraph suitable for his product description and put it in his product description. Is seller A right to do this?

No! Seller A is not the original author of the product description and therefore does not own the copyright of this description.

4. How to prevent copyright infringement?

Amazon provides corresponding tools for brand owners and non-brand owners to deal with infringement, but the protection mechanism and process are different.

You can refer to the previous article: Injustice! Obviously there is no infringement, but what should I do if I am complained maliciously? !Amazon account security hot topic answers

5. Complaint Tips

Confirm whether you have any infringement-related violations:

First of all, you can go to the seller platform, [Performance] > click [Account Status] to check whether there are related violations.

The Product Policy Compliance page allows you to see records of products that violate Amazon's policies. When you see warnings in the two columns of "Suspected Intellectual Property Infringement" and "Intellectual Property Complaint", it means that there may be a problem of infringement. You can then appeal the violations displayed on this page.

Click on one of the issues to see the corresponding notice of infringement.

Typically, a notice of copyright infringement violation contains the following important information:

Copyright Owner Name and Contact Information Infringed ASIN and ASIN Name Infringement Type Complaint Number

Sellers can check and confirm whether their products are infringing based on the above information, and proceed to the next step of appeal.

Confirm that you are indeed infringing:

Sellers need:

In-depth analysis of the root cause of the infringement to find the content related to the infringement.Update the product details page, delete relevant infringing content (text/pictures) and provide evidence, such as copyright registration certificate, original author certificate and work completion time certificate (example: a video that records the creative process with a camera and details of the time, date and original proof materials ) Confirm that the content has been updated, and then send the POA through the seller platform for review

Dou Xiaobao recommends that you keep some evidence during the creation process in case of emergencies. Don't be afraid of trouble!

The above is the self-examination and self-rescue method summarized by Dou Xiaobao for copyright violations in Amazon store operation! I hope that all sellers can make sufficient preparations in advance. During the peak season, if you have capital needs, you can find Doushabao. The exclusive fund solution for cross-border e-commerce will help sellers to go overseas. Sellers who meet the application qualifications will have the opportunity to obtain financial institutions launched by domestic financial institutions. Loan products can effectively alleviate cash flow problems, develop business, operate and stock up, and expand business territory.