Gucci, YSL, others suing Alibaba back down on mediation threat

By Jonathan Stempel NEW YORK (Reuters) - Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent and other luxury brands suing Alibaba Group Holding Ltd for promoting the sale of counterfeit goods have backed away from their threat to withdraw from mediation, despite Alibaba founder Jack Ma's statement that he would rather lose the case than settle. Brands owned by Paris-based Kering SA accepted U.S. District Judge Kevin Castel's request that they try to resolve their differences through a mediator, their lawyer Robert Weige