Less than 2 minutes

How to avoid intellectual property infringement reports

At Mercado Libre, we protect intellectual property rights, that’s why it’s prohibited to offer counterfeit products or content that infringes third-party rights

If you list counterfeit, pirated, knockoffs, or replicas, or if the content in your listings infringes protected rights, you may receive intellectual property reports that could lead to your partial, temporary or permanent suspension to sell on the website.

The reports due to infringements are made by holders of rights or their legal representatives, as part of the Brand Protection Program (BPP). These reports help us learn to identify tendencies or general patterns that enable us to detect infringements automatically. 

All listings that infringe our intellectual property policies will be cancelled or paused. This will also affect your synchronized listings, both in Catalog listings and in traditional listings, as well as in variations if there are any. Learn more about our Catalog

Below we list some of the intellectual property infringements that can impact the status of your listings and recommendations to avoid infringing holder’s rights. 

It’s recommended that you always keep the purchase invoice of your product. It may serve as a means to prove the authenticity of the product you offer if it’s reported as an alleged counterfeit product. 

Use third-party logos or photos only if you are authorized to do so

Logos or photos may be included in your listing only if you are authorized or licensed to use these registered trademarks or protected images. Otherwise, you might be infringing intellectual property.

Please note that the authorization must be in writing so that you can attach it to your response if the rights holder reports your listing.

  • Take your own photos. Check out more tips about photos
  • If you edit the images in your listing, don’t include third-party logos or trademarks.

If you download photos from the internet, you may be infringing third-party copyrights.

Creating listings correctly

Listing counterfeit, imitation, or copied products is prohibited because these items weren’t manufactured or authorized by the trademark holder. 

For example: a smartwatch that claims to be a Xiaomi product when it actually isn’t or earphones that imitate the shape of AirPods when they aren’t Apple products.

To avoid infringements of this type you must:


✔ Always offer authentic products.

Clearly specify the product’s compatibility

In the title: 

  • Specify the real brand of the product you offer. By “real brand” we mean the private label that identifies the manufacturer of your product.
  • Make the compatibility clear in the title by including words such as “for” or “compatible with.”
  • Don’t use words such as “like”, “imitation”, “same as”, “identical to”, etc. when referring t

In the product specification sheet:

  • Specify the real brand in all the corresponding fields of the sheet. If the product you offer is unbranded, make sure to specify that it’s a “generic” product.

 

Incorrec:

Iphone charger 5,6,7,8 and Plus

Description: 

Iphone charger 5w + lightning cable 1 meter

Product specification sheet:

Brand: like Apple

Correct:

Charger compatible with Iphones 5,6,7,8 and Plus

Description: 

Charger combo compatible with

Iphone 5w + lightning cable 1 meter

Product specification sheet: 

Brand: Generic

Also ensure consistency across the title, description, product specification sheet, and image, and always display the private label of the product you are offering.

 

Tip: Avoid using words such as “imitation,” “like,” “identical to” or “replica” to refer to third-party trademarks. 

If you offer products with the option of being customized by the buyer, avoid using third-party logos or trademarks if you have no authorization to do so. 

When creating your listings, remember:

  • Write your own description. If you copy the description of a product or, for example, copy a book synopsis in your listing, you may be infringing copyrights.
  • Don’t imply that you are the official distributor of a brand without the corresponding authorization. 

Learn about the different types of infringements and make sure that you aren’t infringing any intellectual property rights or laws currently in force. 

What did you think about this content?