General Administration of Market Regulation: Strive to significantly improve the quality of online trading platform products and services by 2030

Zhitong Finance App learned that on December 12, the General Administration of Market Regulation and other departments issued guidance on improving the quality of online trading platform products and services, striving to significantly improve the quality of platform products and services by 2030, outstanding product quality issues in key areas are effectively managed, the degree of standardization and standardization of online services has improved markedly, and the online trading environment is more optimized to form a number of internationally competitive online trading enterprises and brands. Consumer satisfaction has increased dramatically, and promote the innovation and healthy development of the platform economy.

The original text is as follows:

Guidance on improving the quality of products and services of online trading platforms

National City Quality Supervision and Quality Control Issue [2025] No. 102

Improving the quality of online trading platform products and services is of great significance in improving the online consumption environment, meeting people's growing needs for a better life, and promoting the innovation and healthy development of the platform economy. In order to implement the decisions and arrangements of the Party Central Committee and the State Council and improve the quality of online trading platform products and services, the following opinions are put forward.

I. General Requirements

Guided by Xi Jinping's ideology of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, fully implement the spirit of the 20th National Congress and the 20th Plenary Session of the Party, adhere to the people-centered idea of development, focus on improving the quality of products and services of online trading platforms (hereinafter referred to as platforms), strengthen quality support and standard guidance, implement comprehensive quality management, improve the effectiveness of quality supervision, create a safe and secure consumption environment, and stimulate consumption potential through high-quality supply. Strive to achieve significant improvement in the quality of platform products and services by 2030, outstanding product quality issues in key areas have been effectively managed, the degree of standardization and standardization of online services has improved markedly, and the online trading environment has been further optimized to form a number of internationally competitive online trading enterprises and brands. Consumer satisfaction will increase dramatically, and promote the innovation and healthy development of the platform economy.

II. Improving the supply quality of products and services

(1) Promote the quality and innovation of online sales products. Strengthen quality standards, inspection and certification systems and brand building in the fields of online sales of home appliances, home improvement, electronic products, textiles, clothing, food, etc., and promote the same standards and quality of online and offline products. Support the platform, operators within the platform, manufacturing enterprises, industry associations, scientific research institutions, etc. to jointly implement innovation-driven quality improvement plans to promote collaborative quality improvement in the supply chain. Support the platform to develop data products and services such as demand customization and risk management, and develop new manufacturing models such as on-demand production, market-based production, and personalized customization. Deeply implement excellent quality projects in the manufacturing industry, encourage platforms and operators within the platform to strengthen the application of enterprise quality management capability evaluation results, and promote manufacturing enterprises to improve their quality management capability levels. Support the development of new forms of instant retail integrating online and offline, and encourage platforms to strengthen differentiated competition. Guide platform enterprises to broaden and optimize online sales channels for foreign trade products, carry out procurement docking, standard docking, certification docking, and enriching consumer supply. (Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Ministry of Commerce, General Administration of Customs, General Administration of Market Regulation, National Data Administration, etc. are responsible according to the division of responsibilities)

(2) Improve online service quality management rules. Gradually improve online service quality standards in key areas. Support the platform to improve online product display and interactive experience functions, and use 3D modeling, AR, VR and other technologies to promote virtual experience services. Encourage platforms and operators within the platform to disclose service quality commitments, establish self-regulatory mechanisms for honest management and quality service, and promote standardization and popularization of services such as “genuine product guarantee” and “10 losses for one fake”. Encourage platforms to use electronic signature technology to improve service efficiency. Support the platform to establish and improve service quality evaluation systems, and implement hierarchical management of online service providers. Support industry associations and technical institutions to research and establish a comprehensive platform service quality evaluation index system, covering key indicators such as product authenticity, user evaluation, after-sales service, express delivery service, dispute handling, etc., and carry out third-party evaluations to guide healthy competition in the industry. (The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Commerce, the General Administration of Market Regulation, the State Post Office, etc. are responsible according to the division of responsibilities)

(3) Cultivate network operators that are trusted by the public. Guide the platform's algorithm logic to focus on quality. Promote pilot product quality grading projects within the platform and encourage the establishment of quality grading zones. Develop a number of safe consumer online stores and live broadcast rooms, and cultivate a number of online brands with good service quality, sufficient innovation momentum, and strong driving effects. Encourage the platform to optimize and improve credit evaluation mechanisms, include credit information such as a list of business abnormalities, a list of serious offenses and loss of trust, administrative penalties, and credit repairs shared by market supervisory authorities in accordance with the law, and urge operators within the platform to truthfully disclose consumer evaluation information. Guide the platform and operators within the platform to strengthen connections with government service platforms such as the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System and the National Credit Information Sharing Platform, and improve the quality information labeling of network operators. (The Central Internet Information Office, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Commerce, the General Administration of Market Supervision, etc. are responsible according to the division of responsibilities)

3. Strengthen the overall quality management of business entities

(4) Improve the quality management level of the entire platform link. The platform is encouraged to integrate empirical practices such as the ISO9001 quality management system and the international credit evaluation system to establish a quality management system in a systematic and systematic manner. Guide the platform to establish a chief quality officer system and improve the internal review and continuous improvement mechanism of the system. Compute the platform's responsibilities for the review of the entry qualifications of operators within the platform and the review of product and service listings. Encourage platforms to use digitalization, artificial intelligence, etc. to improve shopping guide consulting, daily inspection, and false evaluation control capabilities. Supervise the platform to assist market supervisory authorities to take effective control measures against platform operators included in the list of abnormal operations and the list of serious offenses and loss of trust in accordance with the law, and use credit supervision data as an important basis for implementing entry and exit from the platform, traffic distribution, etc. Guide the platform and operators within the platform to strengthen the review and inspection of supporting materials such as quality inspection reports, certification certificates, certification agency qualifications, etc., put an end to false agencies and false inspection reports, avoid acts such as replacing product quality certificates with batch sample test results, etc., and standardize third-party evaluation activities. (The General Administration of Market Regulation is responsible)

(5) Improve the quality management capabilities of operators within the platform. Compute the main quality responsibilities of operators within the platform and promote the establishment of a full-chain quality control system including supplier management, quality inspection, quality safety traceability and anti-counterfeiting, and defective product recalls. Guide and help operators within the platform to implement or accept quality management systems and product certifications, strengthen quality inspection and certification checks, and promote sharing and mutual recognition of test results. The guide platform establishes an entry training and regular rotation training mechanism, focusing on strengthening quality management training for new business formats, new operators and suppliers, and preparing operation manuals to promote the quality control of online transactions. (The General Administration of Market Regulation is responsible)

(6) Strengthen the quality literacy of live e-commerce practitioners. Guide live broadcast room operators and live streaming marketers and service agencies to establish quality-centered product selection mechanisms, improve product selection capabilities, and improve product selection files. Supervise live e-commerce platforms and live streaming marketers service agencies to establish and improve quality management training mechanisms for live streaming marketers, adopt online modular training and other methods to strengthen quality responsibility education and clarify quality and safety obligations. Live e-commerce platforms are urged to establish a “black list” system, and live streaming room operators and live streaming marketers who seriously violate quality laws, regulations, and rules are included in the “black list” and restrained. (The Central Internet Information Office, Ministry of Commerce, General Administration of Market Supervision, etc. are responsible according to the division of responsibilities)

IV. Controlling illegal business practices in online transactions

(7) Control illegal acts such as misaligned goods. Strengthen the management of outstanding issues such as counterfeiting, substitution, and false labeling, and strictly crack down on acts such as selling counterfeit and shoddy products and falsifying energy efficiency labels. Operators within the platform are urged to strictly implement the inspection system for goods purchased and sold, and to disclose true, accurate and complete product and service information to consumers. Regulate online sales of anti-counterfeiting signs and codes, and step up the crackdown on illegal sales of anti-counterfeiting signs and providing false anti-counterfeiting inspection services. (The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the General Administration of Market Regulation are responsible according to the division of responsibilities)

(8) Control illegal acts of misleading marketing. Strengthen the rectification of the use of the Internet to publish false and misleading product quality information. Strictly crack down on illegal acts of live streaming of goods and false advertising in key areas such as food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, medical devices, and financial products. Strictly crack down on illegal acts such as false reports, qualification certificates, and supporting documents sold online by inspection and testing institutions, and strengthen comprehensive inspection and inspection management in key areas such as jewelry, jade, and precious metals. Strengthen efforts to rectify illegal acts such as the platform and operators within the platform inducing consumers to trade. (The Central Internet Information Office, the National Development and Reform Commission, the General Administration of Market Supervision, the General Administration of Financial Supervision, the State Drug Administration, etc. are responsible according to the division of responsibilities)

(9) Combating unfair competition and price violations. Compile the legal obligation of the platform and the operators within the platform to disclose price information. Investigate and punish acts such as violation of clear pricing regulations, price fraud, and low price dumping in accordance with law. Standardize price comparison behavior and promote high quality and high prices. Improve the rules of conduct on platform subsidies to effectively guarantee the right of operators within the platform to set their own pricing. Control the vicious competitive behavior of operators within the platform where they continue to sell at prices below cost. (The General Administration of Market Regulation is responsible)

5. Strengthen quality supervision of online trading platforms

(10) Strengthen quality supervision throughout the chain. Promote the implementation of the “Product Digital Passport” program, pilot quality and safety coding verification in key product areas, create a mechanism for assigning codes at the source of production, bright code inspection on platforms, and use coding for consumers to identify authenticity and trace the origin through “codes”. Strengthen the supervision of measuring instruments such as electronic price scales sold online, and urge platforms to check relevant type approval certificates. Strengthen the inspection of live e-commerce products, influencer products, “novel and exotic” and other emerging products and products with abnormal prices, establish a mechanism for reporting the results of quality supervision and spot checks on online sales products, and urge the platform to promptly remove unqualified products and hand over suspected crimes to the public security authorities. Strengthen the supervision of online consumer goods recalls, normalize the promotion of recall information to the platform, guide the platform to establish a rapid recall response mechanism for defective products, link manufacturers, operators within the platform, logistics, etc. to locate the recalled product batches, and implement recalls in accordance with the law. (The General Administration of Market Regulation is responsible)

(11) Strengthen smart supervision. Strengthen the application of technologies such as big data, blockchain, artificial intelligence, and quantum random numbers, build a national industrial product quality and safety monitoring and early warning platform, and promote cross-domain integration and intelligent analysis of regulatory data. Strengthen capacity building to monitor online transactions and explore penetrating supervision. Support eligible regions to use technologies such as data analysis, image recognition, behavioral analysis, and machine learning to promote digital supervision of platform quality. Promote the opening of product and enterprise certification information, inspection and testing information, credit supervision data, etc. to the platform to improve the timeliness of data comparison. (The General Administration of Market Regulation is responsible)

(12) Strengthen supervisory coordination. Strengthen the linkage and complementarity of normalized supervision and centralized rectification in an integrated manner, strengthen the risk management and control role of normalized supervision, and highlight the enforcement deterrent effect of centralized regulation. Establish and improve quality coordination and common management mechanisms between government and enterprises, and accurately inspect and deal with quality issues. Promote integrated online and offline supervision, and achieve an efficient connection between online monitoring and offline inspection. Strengthen cross-regional law enforcement collaboration between supervisory authorities where the platform resides, where operators within the platform live, and where illegal acts have occurred, and establish and improve mechanisms for information exchange, mutual recognition of evidence, and law enforcement interaction. (The General Administration of Market Regulation is responsible)

6. Create a safe and secure online consumption environment

(13) Promote disclosure of information. Standardize and guide the platform and operators within the platform to “light up, light up the rules”, and urge the platform to clean up invalid licenses. Strengthen the construction of credit systems in the online consumer sector, and publicize consumer complaint information, administrative law enforcement information, and corporate credit information in accordance with the law. Supervise the platform to publicize service agreements and transaction rules in accordance with the law, and guide operators within the platform to truthfully disclose relevant information such as product and service quality. (The Ministry of Commerce, the General Administration of Market Regulation, etc. are responsible according to the division of responsibilities)

(14) Strengthen after-sales service. Promote the establishment of a full-chain after-sales service guarantee system of “standards leadership, technical empowerment, implementation of responsibilities, and insurance support”. Guide the platform to optimize the dispute handling process and support convenient services such as fast refunds and 24-hour response. Encourage platforms to set up manual service hotlines, simplify manual service procedures, and provide direct manual hotline services to the elderly. Operators within the platform are urged to strictly fulfill legal obligations such as repairs, replacements, and returns. Encourage the platform to improve the pre-payment mechanism for compensation and simplify the payment process. Strengthen the promotion of product and service quality insurance applications. (The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Commerce, the General Administration of Market Supervision, the General Administration of Financial Supervision, etc. are responsible according to the division of responsibilities)

(15) Raise the level of facilitation of consumer rights protection. Encourage platforms to improve online quality dispute resolution mechanisms, open channels for quick handling of complaints and disputes, and implement “early settlement”. Support the platform to launch a “one-click proof” function for consumer rights protection. Guide the platform to efficiently handle consumer complaints transferred by market supervisory authorities and consumer organizations, and encourage the establishment of time-limited feedback mechanisms. Support consumer organizations to perform their duties in accordance with the law, explore public interest litigation and class action litigation mechanisms in the field of online consumption, and carry out public welfare services such as quality reminders, disclosure of complaint information, comparative tests, and consumer investigations. (The General Administration of Market Regulation is responsible)

All relevant departments in all regions should fully understand the importance of improving the quality of products and services of online trading platforms, combine actual and detailed measures, and consolidate responsibilities and promote them in an integrated manner. Dynamically grasp the improvement in the quality of platform products and services, and step up supervision and guidance. Carefully search for problems and shortcomings in work, and continuously improve work models and methods. Strengthen the promotion of typical cases, promote consensus on quality improvement, and create a favorable atmosphere for innovation and healthy development of the platform economy.

This article was compiled from: “General Administration of Market Supervision and Administration” official website; Zhitong Finance Editor: Chen Xiaoyi.