As advocates for choice, competition and innovation on the Net, we’re troubled to read about a ludicrous court ruling against online commerce. The French Tribunal de Commerce in Paris ordered eBay to pay 39 million Euros to French luxury goods maker LVMH. Mike Masnick of Techdirt shares our outrage here.

Judging by media coverage of this ruling, one would think it’s all about preventing sales of counterfeit goods. But it’s actually much farther-reaching than that, in a way that’s incredibly damaging to the growth of e-commerce, small business and consumer choice in Europe. The French Court ruled that eBay must halt the sale of legitimate, genuine LVMH perfumes on the eBay site. Essentially, the Court held that a big business like LVMH could stop customers and owners of its products from re-selling them to someone else. This is blatant discrimination by French authorities against the e-commerce channel. eBay is appealing the ruling (read their take on the ruling on their company blog, eBay Ink). The outcome of this appeal could impact the future of e-commerce around the world.

Imagine if efficient online marketplaces like eBay, Overstock, Amazon and others had to pull the plug on entire categories of items, preventing perfectly legal sales of authentic items. Millions of shoppers use these sites to find great deals on things they want or need. During tough economic times, many people look to the web to help stretch a household budget. And millions of people around the world use the web as a tool for running their small businesses. And if you think that this is just another example of “France being France,” think again. This backward, anti-competitive perspective may be coming to a court near you. Any day now, the Federal District Court in New York will rule on Tiffany’s lawsuit against eBay. Again, Tiffany is crying counterfeits, and trotting out dubious data on online sales. But we believe Tiffany’s real interest here is to shut down any distribution of Tiffany products that isn’t completely controlled by Tiffany. Got a gift of earrings that just aren’t your style? If the New York court rules the wrong way, you may no longer have the option of selling them online.

Of course, counterfeits are a scourge to any marketplace. They undermine brand integrity and cheat buyers. And counterfeits have been a problem long before the Internet existed. eBay and others have worked hard to stem the sale of fake items. But go to any urban sidewalk, bazaar or back alley, and you’ll likely find the counterfeit trade still thriving. So when manufacturers and retailers cry “counterfeit” and point fingers at the e-commerce channel, their true motives are exposed. They’re calling for competition prevention—not consumer protection. And when courts agree with them, we all lose.

Steve DelBianco is executive director of NetChoice.

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There’s a big fuss across the pond about two men kissing. A recent Heinz ad was taken off the airwaves after the UK Advertising Standard Authority received over 200 complaints.

And I always thought they were supposed to be so much more open-minded than us Yanks! A Boston news outlet’s editorial claims, “As far as images of same-sex families go, it’s positively delicious.” I think that author missed the boat completely. What’s funny is that I don’t think the commercial has anything to do with being gay. We’ve discussed marketing to gays on this blog before, but this is an entirely different scenario. The idea behind the ad is that the deli mayo is so authentic tasting that the “mother figure” is replaced as a New York deli worker. Either that, or it’s normal for children of gay couples in London to call their one father “mum” and for that person to be dressed in the morning like they’re working at a diner.

Heinz used creativity in making a provocative, compelling and memorable ad. What more could a brand want?

What’s your take on the ad? Was Heinz wrong to make it? Were they wrong to pull it?

Pat Cauley is Electronic Retailer magazine’s eMedia Editor

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  Home furnishings giant IKEA clearly has a grip on its segment of retail. IKEA, originating in Sweden, has grown into an international fixture over the years. However, cultures around the world are very different, and therefore, the marketing and advertising that makes sense to consumers in different countries can vary greatly. Knowing that most Europeans are typically harder to offend than most Americans when it comes to sexuality, would this kind of advertising work in United States? Would this be harmful to the IKEA brand? Electronic Retailer reached out to Dan Akalou, IKEA’s general manager, to get his input on this thought-provoking issue.

“This commercial, which aired in Scandinavia, reflects both the impact of divorce on home life (the tag-line reads ‘A better divorce for everyone’), as well as the versatility of the IKEA range of home furnishings solutions. It’s unlikely that we would run advertising like this in the United States. That said, the sentiment of versatile products that allow adults to have an adult home even when they are parents, is consistent across national borders. IKEA is known for doing edgy commercials in many of its markets. Breakthrough communication creates awareness quicker and at a lower cost than the usual informative approach to advertising.” —Dan Akalou, IKEA general manager.

Do you think this ad would work in the U.S.?

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