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Nasscom's Feedback on Draft BIS Standard for E-Commerce Self-Governance
Nasscom's Feedback on Draft BIS Standard for E-Commerce Self-Governance

March 3, 2025

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On February 28, 2025, nasscom submitted its feedback on the Draft BIS Standard – E-commerce – Principles and Guidelines for Self-Governance, highlighting key areas in the draft requiring review to ensure practical implementation without disrupting operational efficiency and alignment with existing regulations.

Key Concerns & Recommendations

  1. Scope & Coverage: The standard excludes online sellers, enabling service providers, and technical service providers while focusing solely on platforms. If the intent is to regulate only platforms, this should be clearly defined by the standard in its title or within the text; otherwise, similar standards should be introduced for other e-commerce entities like online sellers, enabling services providers and technical service providers.
  2. Prohibition on Platform-Affiliated Sellers: The standard prohibits platform-affiliated sellers, and it is not explained how this is relevant for consumer protection and is necessary, as against any other measure that may be based on disclosures. This issue has been widely discussed in the past in the context of the earlier proposed ecommerce policy, and we had pointed out this step is expected to result in unintended outcomes like disrupting perfectly legitimate business models. We have illustrated the same in our feedback. Since the standard already covers the requirement of non-discriminatory treatment to seller(s) or group of sellers, either directly or indirectly, the need for this prohibition should be reviewed.
  3. Burden of Verifying Product Authenticity: the standard makes bold attempt to strengthen consumer protection through mandates for e-commerce platforms however it does not suggest ways and methods on how the e-commerce entity can verify or ensure 100% authenticity, accuracy of product information for millions of items listed by third-party sellers. This is a critical issue for marketplace e-commerce platforms since they do not hold inventory thereby making this verification nearly impossible. It is also not clear whether the said exercise must be conducted on a sample basis or full extent of every article listed on the platform and the timelines for doing so, and what basis may be construed as adequate for ensuring authenticity. The standard should provide some guidance and/ or illustrations on measures that could be adequate compliance of the standard.
  4. Disclosure Requirements for Material Composition & Environmental Impact: The standard takes a uniform view on disclosure of information on material composition and environmental impact. The requirement for ensuring comprehensive disclosure of materials for various items listed on platform may be problematic. For instance, such disclosures for products like electronic devices, electrical equipment’s etc seems impractical as platforms do not own/operate laboratories, testing facilities etc to verify the material composition of such products whose components may have numerous chemicals, compounds, metals, alloys, semiconductors etc. While material composition may still be available in certain item categories like food, mandating environmental impact details for all products appears to be infeasible, especially for products where there is no such legal requirement on the manufacturers and where there is no obligation on sellers to disclose the same. The standard should provide guidance and/ or illustrations on measures that could be adequate compliance of the standard.

While supporting consumer protection, nasscom emphasized the need for practicality, regulatory alignment, and balanced accountability across the e-commerce ecosystem. Therefore, the Draft Standard should be refined to ensure compliance feasibility while fostering a competitive and innovative online marketplace.In case of any additional comments or queries, please write to swapnil@nasscom.in .

 

 


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DraftBIS_ecommerce standard.pdf

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