Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba wants everyone to know that it is serious in its fight against fake goods, this time by partnering with 20 brands through an alliance that aims to oppose counterfeits using big data.
Jack Ma's empire forged the "Alibaba Big Data Anti-Counterfeiting Alliance," which includes Louis Vuitton, Samsung and Swarovski. As the name implies, the alliance aims to fight bogus sellers and fake goods through the use of big data and analytics.
"The most powerful weapon against counterfeiting today is data and analytics, and the only way we can win this war is to unite," Alibaba's chief platform officer, Jessie Zheng, said in a statement.
"With our robust data capabilities, we are confident the alliance will accelerate the digital transformation in our global fight against counterfeits."
Alibaba recently took bolds steps in fighting bogus sellers by taking them to court and tipping the police. The sellers, who advertised their fake goods on Alibaba's e-commerce platform Taobao, were identified through the company's big data analytics program and were caught using the "test-buy-purchase" trap.
According to Alibaba, its current program can scan more than 10 million advertisements on its online platforms a day. So far, the system has removed about 380 million fake ads and shut down 180,000 bogus sellers.
Michael Zakkour, a contributor at Forbes and an e-commerce expert, said that the effectiveness of putting the offenders behind bars won't materialize unless done consistently.
"It remains to be seen how effective civil litigation against and/or criminal prosecution of illicit sellers on marketplaces will be without a massive and consistent application of the practice, but it is a long overdue and welcome response from the industry leaders," Zakkour wrote.
For the brands, however, the alliance is a huge step toward eradicating counterfeits.
"This alliance will allow us to put to use some of the most powerful technologies available in the battle against counterfeit goods," said Sam Shen, a director at Amway, which is also a member of the alliance.