US govt adds Tencent, Alibaba to "notorious markets list

The US government continues its crackdown against Chinese tech giants, with the e-commerce sites of Tencent and Alibaba now included in its "notorious markets" list.

Alibaba, US

US flags China's Tencent, Alibaba for facilitating piracy

Just this Thursday, the US Trade Representative’s (USTR) office bared its updated list of entities that are allegedly engaged in the sale of counterfeit goods.

Based on its statement, the list identified 42 online markets and 35 physical markets that are reported to facilitate trademark counterfeiting or copyright piracy.

AliExpress and the WeChat e-commerce are in the list, the USTR said.

This includes identifying for the first time AliExpress and the WeChat e-commerce ecosystem, two significant China-based online markets that reportedly facilitate substantial trademark counterfeiting, the USTR office said in a statement.

China-based online markets Baidu Wangpan, DHGate, Pinduoduo, and Taobao also remain in the list, along with nine physical markets in China "that are known for the manufacture, distribution, and sale of counterfeit goods", the US government said.

Reacting to this development, Alibaba said it would cooperate with government agencies to iron out the issues.

Tencent, meanwhile, said it is committed "to work and collaborate to solve this matter as soon as possible".

Sources: GizChina, Al Jazeera