ADA Counterfeit Products!

[zenscape]

Fans of ADA products beware, it is reported in adana.hk that counterfeit ADA products were found in Guangzhou, China. The webpage shows how to distinguish between the fake and real products.

Darn! Hope the counterfeits don't reach our country.

[leeruisheng]

Wah. After comparing them, still cant see much differences.

Whether we get counterfeit ADA goods here, I think depends on how honest the lfs is.

[route]

wonder how the quality will be like, wouldnt mind if the quality is there and price is cheaper
china is really good at copying everything and anything. from movies to car designs.. and now even aquarium products.

[Delwin]

If it is cheaper and does the same job, then why not, cos ADA is too Expensive

[jacian]

Based on the link, it seems that they are referring to the fake ADA aqua soil. I will never risk my fish on these fake soil.

[TTS]

If it is cheaper and does the same job, then why not, cos ADA is too Expensive

I certainly second that... ADA products are priced way too high for majority of hobbyist

Having something similar and competitively priced will benefit the majority and perhap force ADA to review their pricing strategy... killing 2 birds at one time (maybe just my wishful thinking )

[illumnae]

there have always been non-counterfeit alternatives to ADA products that are just as good or perhaps even better in terms of effectiveness. however, if you're caught up with brand names and not end result, you have to pay a premium. it's the same for any type of product, not just aquatics.

Think of ADA as the gucci or LV of the aquatic world. better than other products? not at all. more expensive just because of a simple logo? hell yeah!

My profession, of course, does not allow me to condone counterfeit products (), but even aside from that and even with my disdain for the ADA brand, I must say after some thought (I admit my initial reaction was one of glee) the counterfeits do not serve any good purpose both for the ADA brand and for hobbyists.

Remember that the value of the ADA brand is in its name. If prices are driven down and it is a part of the common market, it loses this name and becomes merely another brand like, say, Ocean Free. Then the "magic" of ADA is lost and the hobby loses its premium brand and very possibly another wlil rise to take its place (it will happen...Dupla was the king of the 80s as much as ADA is king now, i've heard), which results in a vicious cycle where noone will win (except the new company that rises to take the premium position ).

Furthermore, any expense the company incurs on fighting piracy ends up being added costs for the hobbyists as prices will increase to make up for the added costs.

It's a lose-lose situation really. Instead of turning to counterfeit goods so that one can feel "rich", one should either just buy the original or turn to othe equally/more effective alternatives without the name premium attached.

edit: I also agree with what zenscape states below. IP infringement is bad!

[zenscape]

I certainly second that... ADA products are priced way too high for majority of hobbyist

Having something similar and competitively priced will benefit the majority and perhap force ADA to review their pricing strategy... killing 2 birds at one time (maybe just my wishful thinking )

I certainly do not agree with your view. Infringers of intellectual property rights are like robbers who illegally misappropriate the goodwill and brands of the proprietors. Mind you, the goodwill is acquired over years of investment and it costs the owners huge expenses in promotion and advertisment. In addition, there are expenses incurred in research for the products so that they gave value to the consumers.

So, do you think it is pretty alright for infringers to ride on the goodwill and capitalize on it without investing a single cent?

I don't know about you, but I certainly will not buy a fake coloured water 'fertiliser' to dose into my tank.

If you think the real stuffs are too highly priced, you have a choice to buy other cheaper products. But to expressly encourage counterfeits is another matter altogether.

[jacian]

There is no short of alternatives, we do not need any counterfeit products.

[TTS]

I certainly do not agree with your view. Infringers of intellectual property rights are like robbers who illegally misappropriate the goodwill and brands of the proprietors. Mind you, the goodwill is acquired over years of investment and it costs the owners huge expenses in promotion and advertisment. In addition, there are expenses incurred in research for the products so that they gave value to the consumers.

So, do you think it is pretty alright for infringers to ride on the goodwill and capitalize on it without investing a single cent?

I don't know about you, but I certainly will not buy a fake coloured water 'fertiliser' to dose into my tank.

If you think the real stuffs are too highly priced, you have a choice to buy other cheaper products. But to expressly encourage counterfeits is another matter altogether.

I reckon you've mistaken my point of view... never in my statement above did I mentioned that I support counterfeits. I've never owned any ADA products because the price is just not right for me and there're a lots of alternatives in the market.

FYI, I experienced the nature of Made-in-China counterfeits first hand during my long stay in China... it certainly irks me to my bone!

** I'm sure many of the guys here will never touch any fake ADA products (esp the solutions and substtrate)... likewise for me too.

Peace

[XnSdVd]

I suppose if there's any doubt, we can always check with our resident ADA agent Valice. I know he's supplying Biotope, saw him make a delivery the other day.

[illumnae]

Valice and Biotope's owner (Thio) are ADA's agent. The company they set up as the agency I believe is called Biotope Service Pte Ltd or something like that. You can also pm the merchant ADA SG, which I believe is the account they set up here

However, I'm not sure if they can clear the doubt as ADA might not have committed to protecting their agency exclusivity in the agency agreement and thus may not have restricted other agents in other countries from parallel importing original ADA products to Singapore.

[StanChung]

there have always been non-counterfeit alternatives to ADA products that are just as good or perhaps even better in terms of effectiveness. however, if you're caught up with brand names and not end result, you have to pay a premium. it's the same for any type of product, not just aquatics.

Think of ADA as the gucci or LV of the aquatic world. better than other products? not at all. more expensive just because of a simple logo? hell yeah!

My profession, of course, does not allow me to condone counterfeit products (), but even aside from that and even with my disdain for the ADA brand, I must say after some thought (I admit my initial reaction was one of glee) the counterfeits do not serve any good purpose both for the ADA brand and for hobbyists.

Remember that the value of the ADA brand is in its name. If prices are driven down and it is a part of the common market, it loses this name and becomes merely another brand like, say, Ocean Free. Then the "magic" of ADA is lost and the hobby loses its premium brand and very possibly another wlil rise to take its place (it will happen...Dupla was the king of the 80s as much as ADA is king now, i've heard), which results in a vicious cycle where noone will win (except the new company that rises to take the premium position ).

Furthermore, any expense the company incurs on fighting piracy ends up being added costs for the hobbyists as prices will increase to make up for the added costs.

It's a lose-lose situation really. Instead of turning to counterfeit goods so that one can feel "rich", one should either just buy the original or turn to othe equally/more effective alternatives without the name premium attached.

edit: I also agree with what zenscape states below. IP infringement is bad!

Hmmm, I agree!

ADA seems to be elitist in a way and they've always sold themselves as having design+science to back up it's stuff. Dupla is somewhat like reading history as it's impact here in KL is not known. I know I'll remember ADA for a long time even if it's after it's time. I'll even get the light fixture fixed if it's broken.

----

Fashion-
Like buying a shirt. For some it's an image, some-political statement, some it's a uniform and some it's just for wearing once like a wedding tux.

Don't get caught up in the wear once things. Fashion...goes out of fashion very quickly. Been there done that-but it was fun wearing plastic.
I would never buy a tool to plant Echinodorus or Aponogeton bulbs-[use once twice a year?]. I would buy something like opti-glass for the clarity.

There seems to be a deluge of lookalikes.
What important that there's no monopoly, more work alike if not better value choices.

Fakes are bad for business, from batteries to shampoo. For you and me it's value loss but for many of them it's survival/greed-opportunity for fast buck.

A copy is always going to be a copy however. A beautiful design motivates and inspires. It must work and the company is accountable in the eyes of the world.

BTW-there's Do!Aqua coming soon. Cheaper line of products but no less fancy IMHO.

Ok-I'm off to check that label...

[route]

Do!Aqua is still under ADA right?

illumnae, I totally agree with you. No point paying a premium unless one can really afford to. If counterfeits can serve the same purpose at half the cost, I'll get it anyway. Most of the time, the extra cost of the product is due to the brand itself. Consumers are paying for the "brand".

But of course, I have the admit that ADA's quality is really good

[hii]

ADA product actually no so expensive, compare taiwan and hong kong with singapore. Most of the product ended here with 2x higher. eg, ADA 150W MH cost only $600++ in HK but guess how much sg selling...the only think i can think of is the shipping to here cost extra than those 2 country or ???

That why lot of Honkies dare to use all the ADA in setup. So envy them.