The European Commission adds online sales company Temu to its list of companies under investigation under the new Digital Services Act, with which it aims to put an end to irregular behavior online. Brussels has opened an investigation into the Chinese company due to suspicions of selling illegal products online as well as the addictive design of its interface. This is a new procedure, in which other similar platforms, such as Shein or Aliexpress, are already immersed, and which can result in the imposition of fines of up to 6% of turnover.
“The Commission has launched a formal procedure to assess whether Temu may have infringed the Digital Services Act in areas related to the sale of illegal products, the potentially addictive design of the service, the systems used to recommend purchases to users, as well as as access to data for researchers,” indicates the community government in a press release.
The European Commission questions the “systems Temu has to limit the sale of illegal products” in the EU, such as those it must put in place to prevent traders previously suspended for these practices as well as the products themselves to reappear. Brussels also places emphasis on reward programs for users, believing that they present a risk of addiction which could have “negative consequences on physical and mental well-being”. of a person as well as Temu’s recommendation systems. Among the non-compliances detected by the community government are also the obstacles to researchers’ access to public data.
“We want to ensure that Temu complies with the digital services legislation. In particular by ensuring that the products sold on its platform comply with European standards and do not harm consumers. Our demand will ensure a level playing field and that all platforms, including Temu, fully comply with the laws that make our European market safe and fair for all,” says Margrethe Vestager, Vice President of Competition.
The file will be inherited by Teresa Ribera’s new team. The investigation does not have a specific deadline for its conclusion and now begins the exchange of information with the company, which will help remedy possible deficiencies detected by the European Commission during the course of the process.
Temu is a Chinese company that offers consumer products at prices much lower than those of its competitors and especially with imitations in the field of home and decoration. According to its last press release in September, it has 92 million monthly users.
