In an online petition to the European Union, eBay is taking a stand against the increasingly common practice of some manufacturers of banning the sale of their products on online marketplaces and shops at prices cheaper than in high street stores.
According to eBay's petition to the European crypto users number data Union, many brands are currently trying to prevent their products from being sold in online shops in the EU. Instead of being available online, they are only available in selected shops, and often at high prices. Some manufacturers justify their position in the public eye by claiming that this is an attempt to prevent the sale of counterfeit products .
But eBay does not consider this a valid argument. According to the online sales platform, the sale of counterfeits is a minor issue: in 2008, 0.15% of the products offered by the platform were identified as potential counterfeits.
With this online petition , eBay is seeking the support of the Internet community. The petition seeks to urge EU competition authorities to "amend European competition law to curb unfair restrictions on online sales and force brands to disclose their agreements to restrict trade in their products," according to the Tagesspiegel newspaper.