Draft regulation holds hope for e-commerce livestreaming industry

The Zhejiang E-Business Association on Wednesday introduced a draft regulation for the e-commerce livestreaming industry and solicited public opinion on it, in the first such attempt in the country.

E-commerce livestreaming is a rapidly growing industry, especially after the novel coronavirus epidemic broke out at the beginning of this year. According to the 45th China Internet Development Report issued by China Internet Network Information Center in April, by the end of March the number of livestreaming users in China had risen to 560 million, accounting for 62 percent of China's netizens.

Statistics by iiMedia Research, a media research organization, show that the market scale of China's livestreaming e-commerce industry was 433.8 billion yuan ($61.31 billion) in 2019, and the growth rate in 2020 is expected to be over 100 percent.

As the novel coronavirus outbreak has drastically changed most Chinese people's consumption habits, the future of the livestreaming e-commerce industry appears promising thanks to low-cost and no-contact advantages.

But China's ever-expanding market still lacks an industrial regulation mechanism to guarantee the industry's healthy and sustainable development.

The draft regulation clearly states the obligation and responsibility of various parties involved in livestreaming e-commerce services, such as platform, producer, livestreaming anchor, and the multi-channel network organization that cultivates online key opinion leaders. In particular, the draft makes a list of "negative" behaviors that livestreaming anchors should avoid. These include promoting illegal or harmful information banned according to the law, promoting information of fake and/or shoddy products, promoting incorrect information such as false advertisement, unfair competition practices, violation of other's privacy, fake transactions and illegal advertisements.

It also stresses the platforms' responsibility in regulating producer and anchor behavior, improving credit evaluation system and safeguarding consumers' rights and interests.

The draft, once cleared, will not only ensure the prosperity of the livestreaming e-commerce industry but also safeguard users' legal rights and interests.