Chinese Government Certifies 20 Group Buying Websites
Legal Evening News, 10/27/10
The China International Electronic Commerce Center (CIECC), a government entity directly subordinate to the Ministry of Commerce, has disclosed that it has issued online group buying accreditation to 20 website out of more than 300 applicants in its first round of evaluations. The names of the twenty firms will be announced Friday.
Companies operating group buying websites must have at least RMB 500,000 in registered capital in order to qualify for accreditation.
Zhang Ge, head of China's Business Credit Platform (BCP) and one the drafters of the accreditation rules, said in the first round government has created the standards, but third-party credit rating agencies implement it, and companies voluntarily apply. In addition to the capital requirements, Zhang said site traffic volume is also taken into account.
The China International Electronic Commerce Center plans to issue a second round of certificates in late December. Individuals are currently not permitted to apply.
Editor's Note: Group buying website Ftuan is reportedly among the first group of recipients, according to CCIDNet. For more background on this topic, please see "China to Regulate Group Buying Market" MD 9/26/10 issue.
Keywords: credit rating Internet Ministry of Commerce group buying Ftuan e-commerce regulation CIECC
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