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PLACING IMAGES ON ONLINE AUCTION WEBSITE IS DISPLAY WITH INTENT TO SELL
The display of counterfeit trademarked goods with intent to sell constitutes violation of Article 82 of the Trademark Act. However, opinions have been much divided in practice as to whether the display of images of goods on online auction websites constitutes "display with intent to sell".
In a 2008 summary criminal judgment, the Keelung District Court stated that in the circumstances of most trading activity, "display" (chenlie—literally "to arrange items for viewing") as referred to in "display with intent to sell" does indeed mean the laying out and presentation of physical goods. But in the circumstances of online auctions, current technology does not allow the display of physical items, so that items appear by means of digital imaging. This is an inevitable result of the characteristics of trading in online auctions, and does not negate the nature of such display of images as the "display" of goods. The defendant, motivated by his intent to sell counterfeit physical goods, had caused digital images of the goods to appear on an auction website, and this clearly constituted the offense of "display with intent to sell" as defined in Article 82 of the Trademark Act.