There has been some very heavy
lifting done to alleviate, at least for
the moment, the counterfeiting
that almost certainly has come out
of China. Thanks to a
multi-barreled effort, the Chinese
pipe maker responsible for the
counterfeited Paolo Becker, Tom
Eltang and Castello pipes (there
may have been even more brands
mis-represented, as it were) has
been fired. He was not, however,
re-assigned to North Korea, as
suggested here. (Nobody ever
does what I suggest. I can't help
but think, 'boy, this would be
some world if people would only
listen to me.' Of course, I
wouldn't want to rule the world
alone. I'd have the fair and
balanced advice of my right-hand
man, Photographer Len, to tweak
the scale to perfection. Things
would be different; you bet.)
The inside scoop is that this
person acted entirely unilaterally,
and will not soon be in any
position to access the materials
that would make it possible for
him to repeat the performance. As
my source informed me, " You will
also notice that the eBay store
based in AZ has removed any and
all pipes originating in China from
their store. Both the manufacturer
in China, and the company in
Arizona have received a
cease-and-desist from my
attorneys in Beijing and the U.S.,
respectively."
"Now here's the thing. This is a
game of whack-a-mole. I've
smacked one of them down, but
another one is bound to pop up.
The problem is that most pipe
makers are not business men, and
have absolutely no clue how to
protect their mark, their
intellectual property, etc.
Additionally, doing this in China,
in a way that's actually actionable
is a huge pain in the ass, and it
cost me close to $20K. For me, it's
worth it, but who else is gonna do
that?"
My anonymous source further
commented on the iconic shapes
by a number of well known pipe
makers that have been ripped off
by Russian and Asian artisans.
When pipe prices hit these
atmospheric levels, this is the kind
of deviousness that almost
certainly has to ensue.
Again, I urge you all to be
vigilant, don't expect something
for nothing and, as the govt. is
always urging us, report any
suspicious activity. (Not, I must
insist, any suspicious activity that
emanates from this site. It may be
suspicious, sure, but it's only
silliness and not damaging.)
Initially, I indicated that I had
questions about the involvement
of a couple of U.S. pipe makers
who have done a good bit of
business in China. Knowing, as I
now do, the home of the forgeries,
and the supply line to the U.S.,
any thought of involvement by
these pipe makers is eliminated. It
is clear that, if anything, they have
been victims rather than
participants and more than
cooperative in stopping the
forgeries.
As news develops, I will keep
you all informed.
Marty
