My name is Roza Khamitova, and I have a line of women’s clothing based on my own hand-drawn paintings and prints of the natural world.  My company is called Shovava:  www.shovava.com

Like artists all over the world, I take pride in the authenticity of my artwork.  Our artwork is our livelihood, and thus we want to protect it and uphold our integrity.

Unfortunately, our designs are rampantly copied, stolen, and sold by thousands of thieves who make profit from our work on websites like 1688, Alibaba, Taobao, Aliexpress and TMall. Millions in China and countries across the globe are using Alibaba Group sites to shop for all kinds of goods. Aside from knock-offs of famous brands like Louis Vuitton and Gucci, a huge amount of products are direct copies stolen from small business owners, artists, and designers. Consumers are often not aware they are supporting thieves by buying cheap fakes.

Alibaba Group has a moral and legal responsibility to its consumers

and to artists to put an end to IP Infringement on their platforms.

I urge David Ho, Senior Legal Counsel for Alibaba Group, to step up and immediately improve Alibaba’s ineffective management of copyright infringement on all their selling platforms.

For more details about what I am asking of Alibaba -- and how AliProtect works -- please refer to the accompanying letter addressed to David Ho below.

The only way to prove our commitment is with action.  And the time to act is now.

Artists and consumers alike, I urge you to please help protect the integrity of original designs, and to advocate for the elimination of worldwide piracy that is rampant on Alibaba Group sites.

Please follow these 2 simple steps:

Step 1:

Please sign this petition and help us call an end to this rampant piracy which is creating an atmosphere of distrust for artists and designers.

Step 2:

Please share this petition.  If you are an artist, please share this with your fellow artists and with your loyal customers to support you and this cause.  If you are a consumer, please share this with your social networks through Facebook, Twitter, and any other social media platforms.

Together we can put an end to this epidemic of theft.  Let’s make our voices heard.

Thank you for your support!

Roza Khamitova - Shovava owner

www.shovava.com

 

What we ask of  DAVID HO:

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I urge David Ho, Senior Legal Counsel for Alibaba Group to step up and immediately improve Alibaba’s ineffective management of copyright infringement in all their selling platforms.

1. Develop a system wherein items are reviewed and scrutinized for possible infringement prior to allowing their sale.  The best way to stop infringement is to prevent it.

2. REMOVE ILLEGAL CONTENT FASTER – Alibaba Group’s IPR team from 1688, Alibaba, Taobao, Aliexpress and TMall  process removal of infringing items anywhere between 7-14 business days (if at all), which gives infringers plenty of time to make illegal profits. 1688 is number one since its’ wholesale site and most other shops get their products from there**

3. Ali Protect needs to punish shop owners by CLOSING their shops on the first (or at least their second) offense and not allow them to re-open. Removing infringing content and simply warning shop owners does not work, pirates re-list items the very next day.

4. Create a user friendly sign-up process and procedure on their online takedown platforms for non-Chinese speaking IP owners to report and submit copyright documents. At the moment, registration takes a long time to happen and is often denied simply because non-Chinese speakers do not understand what is required of them.

Alibaba Group States:
"Alibaba Group, the world’s largest online and mobile commerce company, is committed to the protection of intellectual property rights (IPR) and the fight against counterfeiting. We have a zero-tolerance policy toward counterfeits on our platforms and we work together with brands, associations and government agencies to create visible and significant results in the intellectual property enforcement space.”

However, the measures Alibaba takes in monitoring and punishing merchants who sell counterfeit goods is insufficient. This sluggish approach must change immediately.

The only way to prove your commitment is with action.  The time to act is now.

Artists and consumers alike, I urge you to help protect the integrity of original designs and to eliminate worldwide piracy that is an epidemic in Alibaba Group sites.

THANK YOU.