The golf industry has been fighting the battle against counterfeits for as long as I can remember. More than two decades ago, one PGA Merchandise Show was memorable for the fact that federal officials used a road roller to crush more than a million dollars worth of counterfeit clubs outside the Orange County Convention Center. It made quite the impression on me- although it was really more a symbolic gesture than a true crackdown.

In truth, when you have your products made in a foreign country where counterfeiting is looked at with just about as much disapproval as jaywalking, it was naive not to expect some knockoffs. The problem got acute in golf when the cheap knockoffs were arriving on shelves before the legitimate - and considerably more expensive - products.

It's a continuing problem in every industry.

And knife maker Sypderco is trying to cut (ouch) their counterfeiters out of the marketplace. To do that, they're raising the stakes.

Last week, Spyderco filed suit against eBay, alleging at least five offenses, including trademark infringement.

According to the complaint - first reported in knifenews.com http://knifenews.com/spyderco-suing-ebay-over-counterfeits/)- Spyderco has helped eBay address the problem of counterfeits since 2009, sending "more than 500 Notices of Claimed Infringement ("NOCI") by at least 300 individua www.eBay.com sellers identifying thousands of claimed Spyderco products."

But Sypderco says eBay hasn't responded appropriately. Their suit alleges that eBay isn't taking "reasonable means" to halt counterfeiters. It also alleges eBay "knowingly ignored" the complaints of intellectual property infringement.

According to "The Counterfeit Report" -an eCommerce watchdog group, Spyderco's claims have merit.

"Despite website policy, and repeated trademark infringement notifications," it says, "the sellers and items often remain," and it's not only eBay they're referencing.

More disconcerting, however, is their statement that Amazon and eBay don't notify deceived buyers that they "may have received a counterfeit item, even if it's dangerous or potentially deadly, like OTC drugs, auto suspension parts, or exploding Apple USB chargers."

That should concern anyone who even considers buying products online. As a frequent online buyer, the "reputation" of your seller is one of the few assurances I have that I'm not getting bad products.

Spyderco's going big on the suit, seeing $2,000,000 per counterfeit mark type of goods or services sold, $500 per each deceptive trade practice committed by eBay, and punitive damages.

It's not Spyderco's first try at stopping counterfeiting. A suit filed last December against Kittery Trading Post was dismissed on jurisdictional grounds.

One important fact worth noting regarding this kind level counterfeiting.

Knife designer and Knife Rights' Executive Director Doug Ritter tells me this isn't the kind of counterfeiting where you're getting a $250 knife in a $20 knockoff version. This is
high dollar-counterfeiting where you're seeing a $250 knife being so-well duplicated that the knockoff sells for $200.

According to Ritter, these are quality counterfeits that frequently aren't discovered "until they're sent in for warranty after a failure." So well made, he says, that "unless you are Spyderco or a diehard collector, you can't really tell they are fakes."

Makes sense. And it's the same surprise that I got once after sending a pair of expensive sunglasses in for what I thought was a clearcut warranty repair. Turns out I had a pair of "Foakleys"- despite the fact they came in a "real" box with "real" papers.

Counterfeiting is big business. And the dollars lost by legitimate manufacturers are staggeringly high.

Changing gears… just days after ICAST, word came from Australian fishing reel manufacture Alvey Reels that they would be closing their doors- after nearly 100 years in business.

According to a notice posted on their Facebook page by Managing Director Bruce Alvey "it is with great sadness that I have to announce that Alvey Reels Austalia will be closing down."

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In the announcement, Alvey cited rising costs, a slump in sales and competition from foreign brands. "It's a very hard decision," Alvey wrote, "We have people who have worked with us for 35 years and we are like a family."

But wait, there's more to the story…..

Since the Facebook posting, Alvey has been swamped with orders from loyal customers and anglers who didn't own Alveys, but apparently always wanted to.

Consequently, Bruce updates his closure notice thusly: "we are overwhelmed by your response to the announcement that we intend to close down our business. It's staggering to believe there is so much support."

And because of that support, Alvey will continue to make reels over the next few weeks and "explore options, stay operating, and keep our staff employed."

Will they find enough sustained support to keep making Alveys?

No idea, but as always, we'll keep you posted.

--Jim Shepherd