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To me, it's any transaction that needs to be hidden from the government because it is in some way illegal and would result in punishment if discovered. See also:
Counter-economics - Wikipedia
Counter-economics - Wikipedia
FT and 3Fvape are legitimate vendors based in China. There is nothing "black market" about them. Buying something from your corner dealer, whether a "real" juul pod or a "genuine" Dank Vapes THC cartridge is black market. That, or if you're an online only person, some source you buy from paid in Bitcoin (which isn't as anonymous as people like to think it is) and shipped to an anonymous mailbox.
I don't see fasttech or similar sites as black market. They offer items listed properly and represented truthfully. Black market is for illegal transactions and often will often represent fake items as real.
Since fasttech and similar sites openly tell you if the item is a clone of not, what they are doing is not technically illegal and their transactions can be conducted on the open market.
Like everything else- there are 'degrees' of validity.
I do not consider FT or 3F 'black market'- but definitely 'gray market'- in the sense the items could be / are probably legit as they are stated to be; BUT if it was found out the sources they use are not a typical / IP owner sanctioned supply chain, it would not be a complete surprise. There's also the fact they sell clones- marked as such, which probably infringe on some company or individual's IP. This is vs the "authentic" designer items you can buy on any corner in NYC at a fraction of the price of the original (for CASH only), which to me is black market.
I do not consider FT or 3F 'black market'- but definitely 'gray market'- in the sense the items could be / are probably legit as they are stated to be; BUT if it was found out the sources they use are not a typical / IP owner sanctioned supply chain, it would not be a complete surprise. There's also the fact they sell clones- marked as such, which probably infringe on some company or individual's IP. This is vs the "authentic" designer items you can buy on any corner in NYC at a fraction of the price of the original (for CASH only), which to me is black market.
Some of the stuff they sell is illegal for a variety of reasons; trademark infringement, misrepresented country-of-origin information on the packaging, and so on. However it seems they've cleaned up their act considerably compared to what it used to be, say five years ago.
Just because something is technically illegal doesn't mean it won't be sold openly. There is always the question of enforcement.
That's what I was confused about. I been vaping for 5 plus years. And never met anyone who knew a black market vape dealer.
Fasttech and other major Chinese sellers usually sell the genuine product in my experience, unlike Ebay.
My one iStick Pico mod purchase from Ebay turned out to be a fake. It vaped, but was poorly made. The display was a cheap coarse dot matrix display mounted at a slant. The menu had no 4 click feature to set up the power in TC mode and the general workmanship was under par. Ebay issued a quick refund. I didn't return it because the seller was in China and shipping it back would have cost me 4 times the purchase price.
My one iStick Pico mod purchase from Ebay turned out to be a fake. It vaped, but was poorly made. The display was a cheap coarse dot matrix display mounted at a slant. The menu had no 4 click feature to set up the power in TC mode and the general workmanship was under par. Ebay issued a quick refund. I didn't return it because the seller was in China and shipping it back would have cost me 4 times the purchase price.
IMO, black market generally means the product/service was not taxed and the income will not be declared.
Cheers
I
From how I understood it, since they are located in China and they are not breaking their local laws, it is technically not illegal. This is why they can't really be stopped from doing it. Now whether that is a morally acceptable business plan is another subject.
So far, there isn't much demand for nicotine based vape items to be sold on the black market so most vapers do not see it happening. At least not yet...
Mostly only underage vapers illegally seeking nicotine vape items currently sees that side black market, or in countries that have banned vaping.
So you're telling me that after the PMTA deadline next May (or whenever it actually ends up occurring), anything China Inc wants to sell you in terms of vape-stuff will still be "technically not illegal"?
Good to know!
It may be "technically not illegal" in China, but is is technically illegal to import such things into the USA, and as a retail buyer, you are the "importer or record".
Technically, if the FDA or state governments ban flavored e-liquid, and you "know a guy" selling DIY e-liquids made in his kitchen and he is selling it to you, that is "black market".
Chinese online vendor Ali Baba or Ali Express sells counterfeit AW batteries as authentic AW. AW hasn't made or sold a battery in 3 years. That's black market, too.
Chinese online vendor Ali Baba or Ali Express sells counterfeit AW batteries as authentic AW. AW hasn't made or sold a battery in 3 years. That's black market, too.
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I think you have to cross over railroad tracks to reach the black market. It's usually under the largest tree in the neighborhood and ran by guys sitting on empty milk crates.
Black Market refers to an illegal market or trade. Black Market can be run from within a legit market, does not have to be a sketchy dealer in a dark alley. About a month or 2 ago in NY state (I believe but could be wrong), a large e-cig counterfeit market was busted. Or, essentially a black market. These were sold out of legit retailers, c-stores and gas stations.
So you're telling me that after the PMTA deadline next May (or whenever it actually ends up occurring), anything China Inc wants to sell you in terms of vape-stuff will still be "technically not illegal"?
Good to know!
It may be "technically not illegal" in China, but is is technically illegal to import such things into the USA, and as a retail buyer, you are the "importer or record".
I guess the loophole would be if the package/contents are labeled "for cannabis use only" .
The subterfuge would fail if the package contained nicotine, of course, but many of the products "we" use could conceivably be used exclusively for cannabis and it's derivatives.
Cheers
I
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