China to boost legal management system for online retail after Tmall dispute

China will map out rules to establish a legal management system for online retail, said the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) on Wednesday. MOC spokesman Shen Danyang said the MOC will lead the draft of the rules to form a system for access and exit of third-party transaction platforms and clarify rights and responsibilities of all parties in online retail. The recent heated event of Tmall.com revealed the weaknesses of the legal footing in China's network management with legal hiatus and faulty supervision, which made change imperative, Shen said. Thousands of small merchandisers waged war on the night of Oct. 12 against larger companies on Tmall.com, China's largest business-to-consumer platform by transaction value, after the platform announced it would quintuple its service fees on Oct. 11. Tmall.com is an offshoot of the e-commerce firm Taobao, China's largest shopping website.