Action figure
Apple re-kills Steve Jobs doll
December 22, 2010: 12:16 PM ETPuts a spike through the heart of the SJ Action Figure resale market on eBay
Source: iPhone Savior
"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) violates a celebrity's right of publicity."
That, according to iPhone Savior, is the text of a message received from eBay (EBAY) by a Canadian seller who was asking $1,250 for one of the few Steve Jobs figurines that made it out of Hong Kong last month.
As you might recall, lawyers representing Apple (AAPL) ordered M.I.C Gadget, a Chinese specialty manufacturer, to stop selling its $99 SJ Action Figure late last month. According to Apple's warning letter, the figurine violated a California statute that prohibits use of a person's likeness in a product without prior consent.
Two weeks later, the toys started appearing -- and apparently selling -- on eBay at a Buy-It-Now price of $2,500.
That game ended this week.
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Steve Jobs doll sells for $2,500 on eBay
Predictably, Apple's cease-and-desist order turned the $99 action figure into a collectible
Unless it was a bogus transaction -- something you can never be sure of on eBay -- one of those Steve Jobs action figures that got so much press last month has sold online for $2,500.
The SJ Action Figure, you may recall, was hand-painted doll that sold for $99 until Apple (AAPL) complained to M.I.C Gadget -- its Chinese MORE
Philip Elmer-DeWitt - Dec 17, 2010 6:03 AM ET
