Space News from SpaceDaily.com
EU probes shopping app Temu over illegal products
Brussels, Belgium, Oct 31 (AFP) Oct 31, 2024
The EU launched a formal investigation Thursday into Chinese-founded e-commerce platform Temu on suspicion the site is doing too little to stop the sale of illegal products, in a probe that could lead to large fines.

Extremely popular in the European Union despite having entered the continent's market only last year, Temu has on average around 92 million monthly active users in the bloc.

The investigation will also look at dangers from the platform's "potentially addictive design" that could have "negative consequences" on users' "physical and mental well-being," said the European Commission, the EU's powerful digital watchdog.

The probe is being launched under a mammoth law known as the Digital Services Act (DSA) that forces the world's largest tech firms to do more to protect European consumers online.

"We want to ensure that Temu is complying with the Digital Services Act. Particularly in ensuring that products sold on their platform meet EU standards and do not harm consumers," EU tech chief Margrethe Vestager said in a statement.

The EU wants to know more about the systems Temu has in place to "limit the sale" of illegal products as well as how the platform restricts their "reappearance".

Temu will also have to explain what measures it is taking to address any risks from its service, including game-like reward programmes.

Temu said it would cooperate with the EU.

"Temu takes its obligations under the DSA seriously, continuously investing to strengthen our compliance system and safeguard consumer interests on our platform," a Temu spokesperson said.

"We will cooperate fully with regulators to support our shared goal of a safe, trusted marketplace for consumers," the spokesperson said in a statement.


- Multiple probes -


The EU probe will also look at Temu's systems and how they recommend content and products to users as well as whether the platform is complying with the obligation to give researchers access to Temu's publicly available data, the commission said.

Temu will also have to provide more details about the "parameters" of its recommender systems, which are used by platforms to push more personalised content.

The EU stressed that the "opening of formal proceedings does not prejudge its outcome" and there is no deadline for the probe's completion.

Temu is among 25 "very large" online platforms that must comply with the DSA or risk fines that could reach as high as six percent of their global turnover, or even a ban for serious and repeated violations.

Other shopping platforms that must comply with the DSA include Chinese online retailer AliExpress, US giant Amazon and Chinese-founded Shein.

Other DSA investigations have targeted AliExpress, social media platform X, which is owned by tech billionaire Elon Musk and used to be called Twitter, as well as Facebook and Instagram owned by Meta.

raz/ec/rl

Alibaba

Amazon.com

X


ADVERTISEMENT




Space News from SpaceDaily.com
Chinese researchers craft high fidelity Mars soil simulant to support future missions
Ancient river systems reveal Mars was wetter than we thought
NASA's Parker Solar Probe Snaps Closest-Ever Images to Sun

24/7 Energy News Coverage
One billion Africans being harmed by cooking pollution
US reaches civil nuclear cooperation accord with Bahrain
American firms flag hit from US export controls targeting China

Military Space News, Nuclear Weapons, Missile Defense
China, India should work towards 'win-win' cooperation: Chinese FM
US delays Patriot arms deliveries to Switzerland in switch to Ukraine
US 'moving at haste' to get Ukraine weapons: envoy

24/7 News Coverage
New deep sea mining rules lack consensus despite US pressure
Lightning strikes kill 33 people in eastern India
From Antarctica to Brussels, hunting climate clues in old ice


All rights reserved. Copyright Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.