Cleveland is suing a couple of Ebayers for selling new CG clubs without being an authorized dealer.

I would have expected some other major OEM to step up to the plate and do something about this, but looks like Cleveland is taking it much more serious than others. But why? Are they on the witch hunt for finding out which dealer is to blame?

Attached is the complaint.

Click to view attachment

What is illegal about selling new clubs on ebay? Say for instance that someone wins money in a golf tournament in the form of gift certificates to the pro shop. They go to the shop, but some clubs, lets say some Cleveland wedges in this instance, and then sells them on ebay in order to get some cash via tourament winnings. So yeah, what puts this person in a situation such that they can be sued?

You can do that no problem as long as you do not infringe on trademarks.

The issue here, among many other legal issues, is false advertising. You cannot represent yourself as an authorized dealer when in fact you are not. These guys were spending two years undercutting every authorized dealer price and got caught telling their buyers they were an authorized dealer and their clubs came "direct" from Cleveland.

Technically speaking, even as an individual selling on Ebay, you cannot add a logo or trademark to your auction without permission. Your auction can and will be deleted under the VeRO program if the rights holder complains to Ebay.

What they are doing lessens the value of the Cleveland name and goods. This is simply protecting those retail outlets that follow the rules and are getting shafted because of eBay. If they had said they were reselling them, and not authorized dealers, I doubt that Cleveland could do much. The guys sold $1.7 million worth of Cleveland product. They would have to think someone would come looking at some point.

I wonder if these clubs were sold as used there would be an issue.

I think if they sold them as new then the sellers are screwed. Sell em new - you need to be an authorized dealer. If they sold em as used they would have to lower the price.

Interesting. I'd be pissin' in my pants if I were those brothers...

I wonder how much "relief" Cleveland was demanding in that August letter?

I'd guess that next, Cleveland will probably go after the authorized dealer(s) who sold to these guys too, huh? Would that be the only way that these Cinicolos could get the clubs??? I ask this, because I'm thinking that there must be a pretty good number of eBay sellers who make bank the same way these guys did, right??? How do all those other "big name" eBay golf guys get their new equipment???

Or are those other guys safe just because they don't claim to be an "authorized dealer"?

Don't forget MAP pricing, you as an authorized seller agree to sell at MAP and not lower on new equipment and most companies state you can't sell on sites like eBay, you can sell from your own website. After reading (skimming) the complaint it looks like there may have been some counterfitting going on too!