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[세종=이데일리 김상윤 기자] If an online shopping mall unilaterally hand over the returned product to the supplier due to the consumer’s simple change of mind, it violates the law. In order to increase the profits of online shopping malls, if you pass advertising or server fees to suppliers, you will be subject to sanctions by the Fair Trade Commission.
The Fair Trade Commission announced on the 31st that the enactment of the’Guidelines for Examining Unfair Trade Behavior of Online Shopping Mall Businesses’, which contains screening standards for unfair behavior and examples of violations, will be implemented from February. The review guidelines are internal guidelines applied mutatis mutandis to the Fair Trade Commission’s review of unfair trade practices.
The Large Distribution Business Act stipulates that online shopping malls do not request economic benefits from suppliers, except when sales incentives are set in advance. The new guidelines added’receiving money in the name of advertising expenses and server expenses’ as a representative type of violation of the law. It also banned requests for donations and sponsorships.
In addition, in order for a shopping mall to receive sales incentives legally, it must prove that it is related to the purpose of sales promotion and that it is beneficial to the suppliers as well.
If the provisions and guidelines of these laws are violated, the FTC imposes a fine not exceeding the delivery price or annual rent. If it is difficult to calculate the sales amount, a flat penalty will be imposed within the range of not exceeding 500 million won.
There were also additional types of violations related to the prohibition of improper returns, transfer of sales promotion costs, and demand for management information. The act of returning goods that the shopping mall has already received to the supplier is prohibited because the consumer canceled the purchase.
The act of transferring all installment fees to the supplier during the card interest-free installment event, or requesting the supplier to provide manufacturer information for the purpose of direct business with the manufacturer, is a case in which the prohibition of improper transfer of sales promotion expenses and the request for providing management information was violated. I thought it was.
When the online shopping mall allows the supplier to use their own paid service such as delivery, and the company refuses to do so, the act of lowering the supplier’s product from the search results is also included as an example of prohibiting the act of providing disadvantages.
The guidelines apply to online shopping malls with annual sales of over 100 billion won through direct purchase. Platform brokerage service providers such as Naver will be subject to the Online Platform Fairness Act, which is being promoted by the FTC, instead of this guideline.
Among the guidelines, the regulations related to the prohibition of improper transfer of sales promotion costs will take effect from January 1, 2022, after the already established guideline application period (the end of December next year) ends. Other provisions will apply from February 1.