Trade Competition: Draft Guideline on Unfair Trade Practices in Digital Platforms

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Trade Competition: Draft Guideline on Unfair Trade Practices in Digital Platforms

Introduction:

The rapid expansion of digital markets, particularly in e-commerce and multi-sided platform businesses, has raised significant concerns regarding unfair trade practices and monopolistic behaviors. To address these issues, the Trade Competition Commission of Thailand (TCCT) has issued the Draft Guidelines for Considering Unfair Trade Practices and Monopolistic Acts in Multi-Sided Platform Businesses, Digital Services, and E-Commerce (the “Draft Guideline”). Open for public consultation from August 19, 2025, to September 18, 2025, these guidelines aim to strengthen regulatory oversight under the Trade Competition Act B.E. 2560 (2017) (the “Act”). This document outlines the key provisions of the Draft, the types of anti-competitive conduct it targets, and its implications for stakeholders in the digital economy.

Purpose of the Guidelines:

The Act seeks to promote free and fair competition in multi-sided platform markets, including e-commerce and digital services, by establishing clear guidelines for business conduct. The Draft Guideline addresses collaborative agreements or legal arrangements between digital platform operators and other businesses in related markets, ensuring compliance with the Act and associated legal frameworks. By doing so, the TCCT aims to prevent monopolistic practices and foster a competitive environment that benefits all market participants.

Categories of Anti-Competitive Conduct:

The Draft Guideline identifies two primary categories of conduct that may undermine competition or constitute unfair trade practices: price-related and non-price-related behaviors.

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1. Price-Related Conduct:

The following practices are highlighted as potentially anti-competitive:

  • Predatory Pricing: Setting prices below the average total cost without legitimate economic justification, with the intent to eliminate competitors.
  • Rate Parity Clauses: Mandating uniform pricing across all sales channels, prohibiting sellers from offering lower prices on competing platforms.
  • Resale Price Maintenance: Imposing fixed resale prices on sellers and enforcing compliance through penalties, such as refusal to supply.
  • Unjustified Commissions and Fees: Levying excessive or discriminatory fees, including commissions, advertising, logistics, promotional, or payment processing fees, without reasonable justification. Examples include:
  • Setting fees at excessively high levels;
  • Aligning fees with competitors’ rates (parallel pricing);
  • Charging fees below average total cost to engage in predatory pricing; or
  • Practicing price discrimination, such as charging different rates to “mall sellers” compared to regular sellers.
  • Algorithmic Price Manipulation: Utilizing algorithms or automated tools to distort market prices unfairly, such as manipulating price rankings to favor certain sellers.

2. Non-Price-Related Conduct:

The Draft Guideline also addresses non-price behaviors that may restrict competition, including:

  • Self-Preferencing: Prioritizing the platform’s own products or those of affiliated sellers, while reducing the visibility of competitors’ offerings.
  • Bundling or Forced Usage: Imposing mandatory conditions, such as requiring sellers to use the platform’s proprietary payment gateway or participate in specific promotional events (e.g., “double date sales”).
  • Exclusive Dealing: Enforcing unconditional or predetermined exclusivity arrangements that limit sellers’ ability to engage with other platforms.
  • Discriminatory Practices: Engaging in unfair product rankings among sellers of identical goods or favoring the platform’s in-house logistics provider over competitors.
  • Data Leveraging: Using seller data collected on the platform to gain an unfair competitive advantage for the platform’s affiliated businesses.
  • Collusion: Coordinating with rival platforms or sellers on competitive elements, such as advertisement keyword bidding.
  • Other Restrictive Practices: Any conduct that results in monopolization, reduces competition, or restricts fair market practices.

Stakeholders Impacted:

The Draft Guideline will be enforced in a broad range of stakeholders who are considered to hold a dominant position in the market, including:

  • Digital platform operators in e-commerce and service sectors;
  • Sellers and merchants operating on these platforms;
  • Logistics and payment service providers; and
  • Advertisers and affiliate partners.

Businesses will face increased scrutiny, particularly where practices lack reasonable economic, business, or technological justification. Common practices, such as mandatory use of logistics partners or rate-parity clauses, may now be subject to regulatory challenge.

Conclusion:

The Draft Guideline reflects the TCCT’s heightened focus on regulating the digital economy, particularly platforms with significant market influence. Businesses operating in multi-sided platform markets must review their commercial strategies, pricing structures, and data practices to ensure compliance with the proposed regulations.

Key Takeaways:

Businesses must evaluate their practices to ensure compliance, particularly regarding pricing, data usage, and contractual arrangements.

The TCCT’s Draft Guideline targets unfair trade practices and monopolistic behaviors in digital platforms, with a focus on e-commerce and multi-sided markets.

Anti-competitive conduct is categorized into price-related (e.g., predatory pricing and rate parity clauses) and non-price-related behaviors (e.g., self-preferencing and exclusive dealing).

Stakeholders, including platform operators, sellers, logistics providers, and advertisers, will face increased regulatory scrutiny.

Author: Panisa Suwanmatajarn, Managing Partner.

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