Amazon's Plan to Fight Counterfeiters Will Cost Sellers

Amazon.com is addressing its counterfeiting problem, but it's going to cost sellers a pretty penny. CNBC reports online stores on Amazon that sell name brands, such as Adidas and Nike, are being told they have to pay a one-time, nonrefundable fee of $1,500 per brand. In addition, online sellers are being asked to give invoices from manufacturers or distributors that show the purchase of items over the last 30 days. The process, deemed "brand-gating," was rolled out to selected sellers last week.

Total Retail's Take: While it's good to see that Amazon is taking steps to address its counterfeiting issue, it's not so good that it's doing so at the expense of its sellers. Amazon's counterfeiting problem became very apparent last month when Birkenstock announced to third-party merchants that, as of January 2017, it will no longer be selling products on Amazon or allow its partners to. Ultimately, this move by Amazon helps its customers, giving them more confidence that what they're purchasing from the online retailer is authentic. However, I don't know if such a penalty to the legitimate sellers on Amazon was necessary to get there.