Taobao.com has become the first choice in terms of online B2C shopping by Chinese urban white collars. [CFP]

More than 90 percent of netizen respondents agree that counterfeiting on the Internet is "wild", according to an online survey conducted by Tech.qq.

Nearly 19,600 Internet users had participated in the voting by March 16, with the vast majority saying rampant illegal sales are tarnishing the reputation of online transactions.

"Counterfeit commodities sold on e-commerce platforms harm the interests of both consumers and brand manufacturers, and meanwhile poison the growth of online retailing," Xinhua cited CEO of Taobao.com Lu Zhaoxi as the saying.

Total trade on Taobao, a subsidiary of Alibaba Group and Asia's largest shopping website, surpassed 200 billion yuan in 2009, a surge of 101 percent over the previous year.

Taobao's trade volume is expected to double and surpass eBay this year, the First Financial Daily cited John Spelich, vice-president in charge of international corporate affairs at Alibaba, as the saying.

Yet as the homegrown person-to-person portal grew with breathtaking speed, it became a major marketplace for faked goods.

"The majority of the 7,000 complaints about online transactions we have received are against shops operating on Taobao.com," Huang Xiangru, who heads a group campaigning against faked goods, told the Beijing News.

"As a sales platform, Taobao itself is the biggest victim of faked goods, because it is the first target for consumer anger after they found themselves cheated by counterfeit goods from online sellers," said Ma Yun, chairman of Alibaba Group's board.

Infringement campaign

Ma noted the portal has cracked down on counterfeit goods and will continue the effort.

Last year the company cooperated with branded manufacturers to deal with 8,210 infringement cases on the website involving nearly 3.38 million pieces of goods.

The company has designated 2010 "The Year of Consumers" and began a security program in mid-January with 100 million yuan earmarked for compensation to online shoppers.

In early March, the company together with renowned brands like Adidas announced its determination to fight faked goods in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province.

Some business analysts relate Taobao's recent high-profile campaign against counterfeiting to its preparations for a public stock offering, noting that the company is building up good will to gain the confidence of potential investors.

The company said the specific time for its initial public offering has not yet been scheduled.