The Trade Competition Commission's study on guidelines for digital platform businesses is likely to be completed late this year, with the guidelines expected to be issued early next year.
Somsak Kiatchailak, vice-chairman of the commission, said it is studying the development of guidelines for fair trade practices for digital platforms, with the aim of regulating the rapidly expanding digital economy, including e-commerce, e-services, logistics and especially online platforms operating in Thailand with significant business growth such as Shopee, Lazada, Line Shopping, WeMall and TikTok.
Additionally, there are many foreign platforms that are not yet doing business in Thailand but are used by Thai consumers, such as Amazon, eBay and AliExpress.
"The behaviour of platforms that we have received complaints about includes imposing unfair fees or charges, setting unfair prices for goods and services, mandating the use of their own delivery services instead of allowing sellers to choose, and engaging in anti-competitive or unfair trade practices," Mr Somsak said.
Another complaint was that once products were searched for on search engines and platforms, these were expected to randomly present options to consumers. However, certain stores made special agreements or payments to platform owners so their shops would be listed first, said Mr Somsak.
Many vendors were unaware of these agreements, which sometimes lead to searches not displaying their stores, limiting their ability to sell products. This situation hinders fair competition among businesses, he said.
In a related development, the commission has also pledged to tighten regulating and overseeing merger and acquisition (M&A) activities, as the current trade direction sees businesses expanding through more merging of their acquisitions, potentially leading to monopoly and unfair practices.
The total value of M&A deals from 2019 to 2023 reached 4.27 trillion baht, making it a significant trend, and it is expected to continue increasing. Hence, there must be more stringent measures in place to oversee these activities, he said.
Furthermore, he said efforts would be made to promote a competitive environment to enable SMEs to compete effectively. In the past, SMEs have often been disadvantaged or faced obstacles from larger enterprises.
Measures will be accelerated to improve trade laws and practices, along with developing proactive competition oversight by defining prohibited behaviour and disseminating knowledge about competition law. This will enhance the understanding of SMEs and enable them to better utilise and benefit from the laws, he said.