New Chinese Piracy

Ah...I wonder how much they price the copies. From my observation, copies are badly done, faceup unsuitable, bad taste. Copies are expensive.

As a collector of vintage dolls, I don't think copies will have impact on the doll's long term value because vintage doll collectors are very particular with authenticity. So buyer of copy dolls must know that the copy will always be a copy. There are ways to authenticate a doll through company inscriptions on the dolls body or head, company logo or serial number plate on the doll's head, original faceup etc. I hope Soom dolls and their accessories are properly marked by the company. Certificate of authenticity isn't good enough, there must be company inscriptions/carvings on the doll itself. Copies cannot have these inscriptions because then the legitimate company can sue for sure.

 

I actually saw on both Iplehouse and SOOM a warning about this. I take it people from here have warned them, since I took the time to read through and saw a few people talking about it.
Thats just sickening. What I loved about my DoC was that besides his normal 'I'm a DOC' markings, he had a number in his head, which was his model and I think year made. I dont know if this is normal, but that would be soo much better for everyone if that was how it actually was.
I am scared kinda, since I am trying to sell a doll now, that I traded my DOC for and didnt get the papers or original box for (shes on DOA tho, so theres the feedback...). The paranoia will keep me from selling. ><
I dont really understand what compels people to do this. Or to buy from these people. It takes away from the legit price and degrades the artists work. Its like saying, well innit that purdy? I can do better, using the same mold.


And by copying off of a mold, would that make the doll either thicker or thinner then the original? Wouldnt it be terribly obvious?

Side note: If someone does accidentally purchase one of these dolls, they can file a claim to get their money back because the goods were counterfeit, could they not?

 

The same environment pops up frequently at anime conventions... I've been to a lot of cons, and there are definately two very opinionated camps about bootlegs. Generally, the con itself takes a hardline anti-bootleg stance (though there are those out there that don't), and a lot of attendees will do the same, but they're generally the older set who understands where the money from their purchase goes (paying the original creator, the studio, the animators, the voice actors, the translators...) Those who don't care about or (ugh) like bootlegs are the ones who think that list of people is rich and can afford to take the hit, because they're so poor and can't afford their precious anime any other way. These are the same people who will be looking for these bootleg dolls... all we can hope for is that they'll learn their lesson.

(As a side note, there is a third camp, which is the ones who say that bootlegging is bad but do it anyway. I've met these kind of people--they'll actually criticize me for things like downloading a fansub of a series to see if I like it (I do actually buy those I like, and those I don't like I don't finish watching), or downloading some mp3s of a band I want to see if I like (same situation, half my cds I wouldn't own if not for doing that)... but then their own computers are full of downloads and their shelves full of bootlegs. There could be a few of those lurking in our doll community too, but I hope not.)

My guess would be that it would be an inconsistent result; they're certainly not going to be as precise about everything as the original company anyway, since they're in it for a quick buck, and so I'd guess that some pieces would come out thicker, some thinner, some just distorted overall, and nothing fitting together.

 

I can't vouch for all the dolls, but my Spinel does have a pretty "Spinel" script written inside the headcap. Inside of the faceplate between the eyes, there's the Soom logo/seal on the inside. I haven't taken him apart and inspected him in detail yet, so I'm not sure if there's anything inside the body sculpt. But with the detail on those few things inside the head, those will be pretty hard to replicate perfectly.

My AOD girl has a model number and year in her head and an AOD logo on her headcap. I've already seen their bodies getting copied like crazy. :/

CAN a Korean company sue a company in China for having these inscriptions? :/

The saddest thing about all of this, is that the original company makes these lovely dolls in hopes that they'll bring some joy and happiness into someone's life, and someone will love them... not selling them to some scum who is just going to make a copy and probably damage them in the process. :/ It's very sad... because those dolls could have went to someone who would genuinely love and appreciate them.

 

Ahhh.....those markings by SOOM sounds really good. Don't know if the company can sue a company in China but those inscriptions/markings cannot be duplicated, otherwise, I'm sure the legitimate company will sue.

I have very old dolls that are not properly marked. It's a headache once the doll company ceases business and we need to identify the doll's authenticity. Markings are important, I always ask for it for both old and new dolls. It's more important than box, certificate of birth, etc. These can all be faked. It is scary because we pay a lot of money in the secondary market.

 

are these people for really? or is this some kind of sick joke?

 

where it a joke, it would be a bad one

 

I'm guessing Taobao doesn't have a policy on bootlegs.

All we can do is be vigilant, and be aware of which dolls they copy. The Unoa box is quite distinctive, witht he red velvet, I wonder if they would bother to copy the box or not? If they are selling these dolls openly as copies, I guess they would use their own box?

 

This is life. These people can easily make fortune from a copy of others creation without any risk to be punished. The blame and boycot of Chinese BJD circles are of no sense to the piracy company.
The Chinese BJD circles are so strick that some suspected dolls are forbidden to show in the bbs such as AOD, but no restrict to the piracy companies since they don't care.

BTW, Taobao has the policy to prohibit piracy, but the terms are not feasible after confirmation with TB.
Trying to close some piracy shop on it, I found it's nearly mission impossible.

If a doll can be copied, how about the box? Would it be easier and cheaper?

 

I just wonder whether this company Meng Ren Xing would bother at all with boxes. The box would be very easy to copy, but it's a matter of whether they will bother, since they are selling the dolls very openly as copies by them, they are not trying to fob them off as the original.

 

D=< outrageous!! Im going to have to go over there and DISCIPLINE them!! aargh!!!

 

That is quite repulsive.

I do have some idea as to the reason. My dad is a patent lawyer, so he has lots of experience with this kind of stuff. It's simple greed. If they can make a doll that people want for less money, then people will, unfortunately, shell out the cash for the "same" doll (inferiority quality and all).

Every single company that pirates good does it for money, and this is no different, as gross as it is.

 

This is a bit of an insult to the people who save up their money and really earn their dolls. It's hard work saving and waiting and then when you finally get your doll (especially your first) you feel really proud and like you really accomplished something.

Them producing cheap copies so that the dolls are "more affordable" and "easier to obtain" is such a distortion of a big part of earning and obtaining dolls in the first place it seems.

 

Em, I agree. I don't think these guys will care about the boxes, but neither do their customers. Their costomers also care little about how the original box or doll is. They only want a cheap doll.

 

That's true, if they keep posting on their site telling people to be wary of this 'company', it might help. In any case, it's great they got the message.

 

I realize I'm a bit late but Seiaeka, I wasn't directing the boycotting comments at you by any means Just raising a general point since knee-jerk reactions are all too common in this type of situation.

While I'm not at all surprised that bootlegging made its way into this community, the sheer scale of what this company is attempting is insane. I myself have been a victim of Hong Kong dvd bootlegs (and helped ruin the American seller's rep as a result) so I know from personal experience what it's like to know you've actually payed for a copy Unfortunately, it's very easy to end up with a bootleg if you aren't very thorough in your research.

It's fantastic that the companies themselves are posting notices. This will likely do an amazing amount for the community, plus the combined efforts of the companies themselves could actually stand a chance of doing something about the bootleggers. nonetheless these copies are still on the market to some degree, and there will always be someone trying to profit off the efforts of others, so we all just need to be careful and keep ourselves informed.

On a side note: I've seen bootlegged figures before (good smile company generally a common victim) and the paint/colors always make the bootleg obvious to the educated buyer, any ideas on how this might translate to the bjd realm?

 

Are you saying Good Smile Company are bootleggers, or a victim of bootlegging? Just a little unclear

 

Oh geez I meant that they're victims of bootlegging. Sorry about that, I've fixed it now (this is why I shouldn't post when sleep-deprived).

 

I was wondering about this too. This company clearly states that it is making copies, so you don't need much education to know you are buying a copy. What if someone knowingly buys a cheap copy and then try to pass it off as an original for the not so cheap price an original goes for?

I've bought a pair of music CDs in the past of which I assumed (don't assume, you know what happens) they were originals, but they turned out to be copies. A background check of the seller could have warned me, but when are you educated enough to tell the difference between copy and original? At a certain point you think you know enough and want to buy that LE doll on aution before you miss the rare chance of buying it.