What is a Amazon Listing Hijack? Signs, Remedies, and Legal Help

What is an Amazon listing hijack? For many brand and product owners on Amazon, discovering a third-party seller on your product or brand page, often selling knockoffs or cheap versions under your brand, is a nightmare. Even with the Brand Registry, this scenario is still unfortunately common and deemed as a “listing hijack”. The worst part is that these brands often rely on a pending trademark, expecting it to be sufficient for the Brand Registry. Unfortunately, this is not the case, and it will not provide complete protection.

One question that often arises is how a hijack even happens. One way this can happen is through third parties listing their products under your brand, primarily if they source through your manufacturer or mimic your product’s look. Brand Registry provides limited enforcement, as Amazon may refuse to act unless the trademark is fully registered and clear. This also included pending trademarks, which usually mean the complaint will not be accepted.

Some of the main symptoms that can indicate that your listing has been hijacked is if there is a loss of “Buy Box” despite you being the brand owner, price slashing by other competitors for no apparent reason, changing in listing content whether this be the images, titles or brand changes without your consent and a noticeable decline in reviews or fake reviews.

Remedies & Best Practices

There are immediate steps that should be taken to ensure no further exploitation can occur. Capturing screenshots and documenting all aspects of the hijackers’ offer, including prices, seller names, and listing changes, is the best course of action. This will give you an incredible framework from which to launch your counteraction. If possible, you can even attempt to do a “test buy” by ordering the hijacker’s product, comparing it side by side. You should also use the Brand Registry tools and report a violation on your dashboard. As stated before, if the trademark is pending, it may not be accepted, but if you can provide evidence, photos, files and existing trademark documents, you still may be successful.

There are also long-term preventative strategies that you can apply, which will help to monitor any potential problems. One of these methods is the Transparency program, which Amazon provides. This program uses serialisation codes on every unit sold, discouraging hijackers by ensuring that without a valid code, sellers cannot list their product. This is especially true when the trademark is also registered. Furthermore, you could also investigate Amazon’s automatic detection and removal of counterfeit offers; however, this requires a high report approval rate, and the trademark must be fully registered.

It is also important to build your listing’s uniqueness and brand everything heavily. Imprint your logo, name, and photos on the products and packaging. This will help you differentiate yourself from competitors. This will also deter them from selling on your listings.

Why the Trademark Room Can Make the Difference

Established in 2001, the Trademark Room is an Intellectual Property service that specialises in searching and filing trademarks. The Trademark Room operates in collaboration with our sister company, Lawdit Solicitors, which specialises in the contentious aspects of trademarks. This means that if you face a dispute or opposition at any time during this process, our sister company, Lawdit Solicitors, will be available to assist.

We understand that there is a wealth of information, so we offer a free telephone or e-mail trademark consultation service to make this decision easier. We are happy to answer any questions you may have and ensure that you are 100% satisfied with the search and application process. For a no-obligation discussion or to answer any inquiries, please contact tmr@trademarkroom.com.

Conclusion

In the unfortunate event that Amazon refuses action on an individual or company that is hijacking your product, even though you are registered on the brand registry or have a pending trademark, you are not powerless. We at the Trademark Room are here to help. What is important is that together, we develop an accurate and fast initial plan, whether this be through test buys, storing and collecting evidence and documents, or drafting cease and desist letters. We can also assist with the brand registry itself, which, once granted, enables us to set up monitoring of your listing and the Transparency program for your product.