Fake mobos – SOYO bares teeth
Imitation the sincerest form of flattery
Posted in Business, 1st December 2000 15:10 GMT
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Mobo maker SOYO, which sold $315 million worth of boards last year, has discovered at least a thousand imitation motherboards in South America, Asia Pacific, Canada and the US.
The company has set up a legal investigation team, and promises to prosecute anyone who manufactures or knowingly sells fake SOYO products
The problem came to light when SOYO's customer service department received some motherboards for repair with unknown serial numbers but identical model numbers, manuals and packaging. Suspect mobos include the SY-6VBA133, SY-5EHM/5, and SY-5SSM/5.
The company says it is currently gathering evidence and promises legal action against the fake manufacturers. Consumers are advised not buy from unauthorised dealers and to be suspicious of deeply discounted products.
Eighteen months ago, ASUS was hit by a flood of fake motherboards (Story: Fake ASUS mobos circulate in Europe) that turned out to have been made in China. The source of the imitation SOYO boards is not yet known.
An Intel representative told The Reg they were unaware of any instances of their mobos being cloned. ®
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