Group 1 - The Supreme People's Court has released five typical civil cases related to online consumer issues, focusing on live marketing fraud, seven-day no-reason return disputes, misleading promotional rules, ambiguous standard terms, and excessive personal information collection [1][6] - In the live marketing sector, a case highlighted false advertising where a merchant misrepresented the material of a product, leading to a court ruling that enforced the merchant's commitment to a "tenfold compensation" promise [3] - The seven-day no-reason return policy was reinforced in a case where a consumer was denied a return; the court ruled that merchants cannot arbitrarily expand the scope of "non-returnable" items, thus protecting consumer rights [3] Group 2 - The fairness and transparency of promotional rules were scrutinized in a case where a furniture company misled consumers regarding a discount offer, resulting in a court ruling that mandated the return of half the payment to the consumer [5] - In a ticket refund dispute, the court emphasized that ambiguous terms should be interpreted in favor of consumers, leading to a ruling that required a ticketing platform to refund the remaining ticket price [5] - The judicial ruling on excessive personal information collection highlighted that an app's collection practices exceeded necessary limits, resulting in a court order for the deletion of user information and compensation for damages [5][6] Group 3 - The release of these typical cases aims to clarify online consumer rules, sanction illegal behaviors of operators, and guide consumers in protecting their rights [6] - The judicial authority will continue to monitor new issues in online consumption to support the healthy development of the digital economy and enhance consumer confidence [6]

Core Viewpoint - The Chengdu Internet Court released a white paper on network consumption governance, analyzing the situation of online consumer disputes over the past four years and proposing governance solutions to protect consumer rights in the digital economy era [1] Dispute Situation: "Gray Industry Chain" Highlighted - From May 2021 to May 2025, the Chengdu Internet Court accepted 2,641 network consumption-related dispute cases, with 68.88% being network service contract disputes, 22.19% being information network sales contract disputes, and 8.03% being product liability disputes. The proportion of collective lawsuits by merchants due to punitive damages imposed by platforms has been increasing, with over 70% of cases in 2025 involving a single technology company as the defendant, indicating a "source opening store - live streaming sales - suing the platform" gray industry chain [2] Current Issues: Improper Fulfillment of Platform Responsibilities - The white paper identifies four major issues leading to high dispute rates: 1. Platform qualification reviews are superficial, allowing merchants with inconsistent business licenses to enter [3] 2. Hidden traps in standard clauses, where a technology company unilaterally changed concert dates and refused refunds, which was deemed invalid by the court [3] 3. Imbalanced penalties for merchants, with some platforms imposing excessive penalties and account bans [3] 4. Ambiguous disclosure of self-operated platform identities, causing consumer confusion regarding third-party merchants [3] Systematic Governance: Building a New Multi-Party Governance Framework - To address the identified issues, the white paper proposes systematic countermeasures: 1. Establishing a new ecosystem for healthy network consumption development, led by industry associations to set standards for new business models like live streaming sales, creating intelligent digital contracts, and establishing a dynamic credit rating system [4] 2. Strengthening platform responsibilities by encouraging platforms to improve self-governance rules and creating a three-tier dispute resolution funnel [4] 3. Enhancing standard leadership and improving the full-cycle governance mechanism, promoting market-driven "standards + certification" [4] 4. Perfecting a multi-faceted dispute resolution system by collaborating with regulatory bodies, e-commerce platforms, and consumer protection organizations to enhance service efficiency and severely punish online fraud and illegal activities [4] Typical Cases and Future Directions - The Chengdu Internet Court also released five typical cases related to network consumption governance, covering qualification reviews, standard clauses, and penalty adjustments, providing concrete references for industry governance. The court emphasizes a commitment to clarifying rules through individual case judgments, improving governance through rules, and enhancing development through governance effectiveness, aiming to build a multi-party governance framework that includes platform autonomy, industry self-discipline, administrative regulation, and judicial protection [5]

Core Viewpoint - The rapid development of online consumption necessitates improvements in consumer protection and the regulation of online marketing practices, particularly in live-streaming sales and promotional activities [1][2][3]. Group 1: Online Retail Growth - In 2024, China's online retail sales reached 15,522.5 billion yuan, a 7.2% increase from the previous year, with physical goods accounting for 13,081.6 billion yuan, growing by 6.5% and representing 26.8% of total retail sales [1]. - Online consumption has become a significant method for consumers, highlighting the need for enhanced consumer rights protection [1]. Group 2: Legal Cases in Online Marketing - A case involving a seller who misrepresented the material of a product during a live-stream led to a court ruling that the seller must honor a "fake one pays ten" guarantee, emphasizing the importance of truthful advertising in live-streaming [2][3]. - Another case highlighted the responsibilities of businesses during promotional activities, where misleading information led to a ruling against a furniture company for not properly informing a customer about promotional conditions [4]. Group 3: Consumer Rights and Return Policies - The "seven-day no-reason return" policy is a critical consumer right in online shopping, with legal backing to ensure its enforcement [5][6]. - Courts have ruled against sellers who attempt to deny this right through vague or misleading terms, reinforcing the legal obligation to allow returns unless explicitly justified [6][7]. Group 4: Privacy and Data Protection - Issues surrounding privacy policies in apps, including forced consent and excessive data collection, have raised significant legal concerns, leading to court rulings that protect consumer rights against overreach by service providers [9][10][11]. - A recent case resulted in a ruling that a company must delete unlawfully collected personal information and compensate the consumer, highlighting the judiciary's role in safeguarding personal data rights [11][12].