The Electronic Transactions Development Agency (ETDA) has defended the merits of the draft royal decree meant to regulate digital platforms, saying the legislation will help strike a balance between consumer protection and business interests in the country.
ETDA also confirmed it has the authority via the decree to suspend platforms' services in the country if they fail to comply with the legislation.
The draft royal decree on the supervision of digital platform services subject to prior notification was approved in principle by the cabinet in October 2021.
It passed the first phase consideration by the Council of State and its revised version is undergoing a public hearing from March 10-25.
The feedback is being gathered for further deliberation by the Council of State.
With a grace period of 240 days for enforcement of the law after it is published in the Royal Gazette, the legislation is expected to come into force next year, ETDA said.
CONSUMER PROTECTION
Chaichana Mitrpant, executive director of ETDA, said it is quite unusual for the Council of State to send its revised draft for a public hearing, but this could be because the law will have a huge impact on users and digital platforms.
The decree was designed to protect consumers following a surge in online fraud, he said. Last year 40,000 complaint cases were filed, including 30,000 online fraud cases.
ETDA acknowledged concerns about platforms' burdens and said the law is designed to ensure any impact is minimal, requiring only necessary rules.
The draft royal decree requires platform businesses of a certain size, based on revenue or number of users, provide information about their business to authorities annually.
The information required includes value of transactions made on digital platform services, gross income from providing the services in Thailand, proportion of total income from operating digital platform services in Thailand, as well as the number of users.
The decree defines digital platforms as electronic intermediation service providers that connect business operators with consumers or other users. This means brands that have direct platforms to connect with customers will not fall into this regulation's requirements.
The decree will exclude some services overseen by other specific laws, such as payment gateway services, which are under supervision of the Bank of Thailand, said Mr Chaichana.
The decree divides platforms into three main categories.
The first is called general digital platforms, defined as: individuals earning more than 1.8 million baht per year in gross income from providing platform services in Thailand; or juristic persons earning more than 50 million baht a year from providing platform services in the country; or those having more than 5,000 monthly active users on average.
The second is low-risk digital platforms or small digital platform operators with lower thresholds than the first category. This group faces fewer requirements for compliance than the first group.
The third category is large and specified digital platform services, which the law requires to conduct risk assessment and provide risk management measures.
Large platforms are defined as those with more than 300 million baht in revenue for each service provided in the country per year, or more than 1 billion baht in earnings for all services per year, or more than 7 million monthly active users, or a user base exceeding 10% of the country's population.
"Our main focus is large digital platforms as they have a massive impact and large customer base, such as e-marketplaces and online food delivery," he said.
ETDA requires only necessary information, not trade secrets, he said.
ENFORCEMENT CHALLENGES
Mr Chaichana said he acknowledges the enforcement challenges against foreign operators that have no offices in Thailand.
"This is not only a challenge in Thailand, but for the world," he said.
"Our authority is to facilitate electronic transactions, making sure trusted services are provided for users with security in place."
The decree gives power to the authority to order service suspension for operators that fail to comply, said Mr Chaichana. He urged the public to apply social sanctions to violators.
Based on the Electronic Transactions Act, operators failing to provide notification or violating an order prohibiting the operation of business could face a jail term of up to one year or a fine of up to 100,000 baht, or both.
"We expect this decree could create balance by supporting local and foreign businesses to generate income and protect consumers," said Mr Chaichana.
The law can promote fairness and transparency, he said.
"We are open to every stakeholder who wants to express a view. We will listen to local and foreign operators who have solid evidence," said Mr Chaichana.
For example, the originally drafted decree required foreign operators to appoint local representatives, but the revised draft only requires them to appoint a point of contact to send required information, he said.
Opinions about the law can be sent to https://law.go.th before the public hearing concludes on March 25, ETDA said.