The draft royal decree aimed at regulating digital platforms could protect consumers, but the details regarding its compliance and enforcement remain in question, say e-commerce and academic pundits.
The decree is going through a public hearing at present, which is due to be concluded on March 25. Feedback is going to be gathered for further deliberation by the Council of State.
The law requires platform businesses of a certain size, based on revenue or the number of users, to provide information about their business to the authorities annually. It also demands operators provide relief measures or remedy for any damage incurred from their business.
Pawoot Pongvitayapanu, founder of Tarad.com, a local e-commerce solution provider, said the decree will enable the government to gain necessary data from digital platforms, particularly foreign operators providing services in Thailand, while helping support consumer protection.
Small digital service operators -- defined as individuals earning up to 1.8 million baht a year or juristic persons earning up to 50 million baht a year, or those having up to 5,000 monthly active users on average -- are required to provide only brief information to the Electronic Transactions Development Agency (ETDA).
Larger operators with a higher threshold are obliged to face stronger requirements.
Mr Pawoot said he is concerned about social commerce merchants that may not be regarded as small operators, as each of their live sales presentations can draw hundreds of viewers.
"Small online merchants could end up being burdened by the decree," he said.
Mr Pawoot is also concerned about the limited number of government staff to enforce the law as they need to keep track of a huge number of digital platforms.
"Some platforms may comply and others may choose not to, but the authorities would find it difficult to catch them for punishment. The current structure is impractical," he said. "If the law is difficult to comply with or enforce, it becomes a toothless piece of legislation."
Thanawat Malabuppha, president of the Thai e-Commerce Association and founder of Priceza, a price comparison website, agreed the decree can help ensure the oversight of foreign and large operators in the country.
"If operators are not required to provide information related to trade secrets, this is fine," he said.
In the EU, authorities are scaling up efforts to regulate giant digital platforms, particularly through anti-competition law, said Mr Thanawat.
The decree requires the establishment of a joint committee of representatives from state and private organisations to provide advice to those enforcing the law.
Suthikorn Kingkaew, a project leader at the Thammasat University Research and Consultancy Institute, said 70% of the joint committee's members hail from state agencies. Representatives from digital agencies with expertise in this field should be sent to sit on the committee, rather than just senior civil servants, he said.
It will be difficult for certain platform operators to comply because it will mean revealing information regarding their algorithms or earnings, specifically those in Thailand, said Mr Suthikorn.
