Hand Me the Paper #13: Summing up the New E-commerce Policy
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What I Read This Week:
Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020.[Link, Link with my scribbles].
(Also, the link with my scribbles has moved to Google Drive, thanks to your feedback. In case there is anything else you would like changed do feel free to drop in a message/comment).
What You Should Know:
This is a draft policy, and if history serves as an indicator, the final product may be pretty similar. I think this is a draft with an expansive mandate, and not all of it seems to be related to consumer affairs in e-commerce. Here are the essential points from my reading:
The term e-commerce is doing a lot of work. It includes stuff from Amazon to Netflix, and while it makes more sense in the case of Amazon, I am not sure how this might apply to parties like Netflix and Google One subscriptions.
The draft clamps down on flash sales, stating that e-commerce companies are not allowed to have sales with:
Significantly reduced prices/high discounts
Attractive offers for a predetermined amount of time
E-commerce platforms are also not allowed to discriminate between users of the same class. In my reading, this is not limited to just price discrimination but also what kind of stuff customers might see when searching for goods and services.
Also, the policy requires sellers to update the geographic address of their headquarters and all branches, name and details of their website, email address and any other information necessary for communication with the seller for effective dispute resolution.
What I Have Been Reading:
Music to My Ears:
This episode with Manoj Kewalramani on The Seen and The Unseen