Apple removing fake white iPhone 4s from eBay?

Although there are still quite a few fake white iPhone 4s on eBay there appears to be less than usual and that is because Apple is working to have them all removed. We have found an e-mail sent to an eBay seller of a black-to-white iPhone 4 conversion unit. Quite frankly, all the “white iPhone 4s” you see on eBay are black-to-white iPhone 4 conversion units as the white iPhone 4 doesn’t exist.

Dear, [Redacted]
You recently listed the following listing:

[Redacted listing name and number]

Your listing has been removed.

Your item was removed because of a request we received from Apple, Inc., a member of our Verified Rights Owner Program (VeRO), asking us to remove the item for:

– Item(s) is a counterfeit product which infringes the trademark owner’s rights.

For more information on why your item was removed, you should:
– Contact Apple, Inc. directly at apple@gibney.com with your questions or concerns.
– Wait 7 days for Apple, Inc. to reply to you. Although most VeRO participants are willing to respond to polite email, please know that they aren’t obligated to reply.
– If after 7 days you haven’t received a response from Apple, Inc., please contact us by simply replying to this email.

The rights owner or an agent authorized to act on behalf of the rights owner, Apple, Inc., notified eBay that this listing violates intellectual property rights. When eBay receives a report of this type of violation, we remove the listing to comply with the law.

It’s against the law to sell fake, counterfeit, or pirated products.

Your listing was removed because the item in your listing was reported by the rights owner as a fake or counterfeit through eBay’s VeRO Program. Due to this report, please do not attempt to relist, advertise, or offer this item for sale on any eBay site or service around the world.

What Apple is apparently doing is quite interesting. They are proving that they don’t want anyone to get their hands-on the seemingly never to be released white iPhone 4 even if they are what they consider counterfeits. What also is interesting is that Apple is claiming the sellers of these “white iPhone 4s” to be infringing Apple’s trademarks. We think some will care that Apple still considers the white iPhone 4 as a product of theirs.