Talk:Grey market/Archive 3

Is the grey market legal?
Sony don't seem to think so: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6076354.stm

Is this a special case or is saying the grey market legal wrong? --Borb 12:09, 23 October 2006 (UTC)


 * I suppose this boils down to definitions of what the "grey market" actually is. I would actually appreciate some clarification of this, as Lik-Sang (which recently shut down as a result of legal pressure from Sony) did not seem to be acting as a grey importer at all. To give two hypothetical examples:


 * Situation A: I go to the website of a Japanese games store and order a PS3, paying for it using my credit card. An employee of the store then boxes up the console and ships it to my home address in the UK. (This is basically what Lik-Sang did, except they were based in Hong Kong rather than Japan.)
 * Situation B: I fly to Japan and physically walk into that same games store, buy a PS3, and pay for it using the exact same credit card. I then walk to a post office, package up the console, and send it to my UK address (or, alternatively, fly back to the UK with my legitimately purchased console in my suitcase).


 * I personally find it hard to believe that Situation A would be considered illegal, given that Situation B plainly is not. 217.155.20.163 09:31, 31 October 2006 (UTC)


 * The English High Court explained why Lik-Sang's conduct was unlawful (not illegal) in its judgment in the case, which can be found at http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Patents/2006/2509.html. The main basis for the judgment was that Lik-Sang's website was focussed, at least in part, on the UK and so involved an offer to sell in the UK which infringed Sony's intellectual property rights (see in particular paras 23 and 27). Chris stothers 00:20, 15 August 2007 (UTC)

In the US federal courts have held gray/parallel as legal. There are disclosure laws by state.

Situation B is Illegal unless upon arrival in the UK you declared you purchase and paid the relevent customs duty. Buying things in another country specifically to sell without paying duty is even more illegal.(86.31.182.119 (talk) 22:26, 31 July 2008 (UTC))

Paying import duty is a side issue. The issue within the EU centres on trade mark infringement- the ECJ ruled that Tesco infringed Levi's trademark by buying stock outside the common market and selling it without levi's permission inside the common market. If, however, you imported goods from one EU territory to another there is no infringement as that is precisely the point of the common market. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 193.82.52.4 (talk) 11:15, 12 May 2011 (UTC)


 * The variety of techniques used to power the "grey market" are much broader than this article recognizes. These techniques range from the unethical (preferential provision of value-added content to deep-pockets, such as free cases and flash equipment with cameras) to the criminal (automobiles shipped with invoices that do not reflect the added value of options). There are also truly extraordinary cases involving the disappearance of goods at the dock. The more extravagant methods require the collusion of hundreds of individuals. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 131.215.115.31 (talk) 19:27, 3 September 2015 (UTC)

Why the picture?
The picture in the template would be more suitable for the topic of trade unions. I don't see how it's appropriate as an illustration of 'grey market'.--95.42.201.224 (talk) 18:53, 19 November 2015 (UTC)

Agreed. This is inappropriate and feels like ideological advertising. Mdnahas (talk) 15:58, 3 December 2015 (UTC)