E-commerce restricted by 'outdated' laws
E-commerce
26 May 2009
Online retailers in Europe are being held back by legislation which is not up to the task, according to one expert.
Even though online retailers in the EU have recently reported annual transactions in excess of €100 billion (£87 million), Petra Papinniemi of ZDNetAsia.com claims the laws that govern e-commerce in Europe are no longer good enough.
She said: "Changes to the legal and regulatory framework are now a priority if cross-border e-commerce is to reach its full potential."
Ms Papinniemi highlighted the legislation that governs cross-border selling as the biggest hindrance to European e-commerce, saying data protection issues which stop companies exchanging information are most in need of reform.
The Office of Fair Trade (OFT) has responded tentatively to a proposal which came after the European Commission's report and would mean all EU countries having the same level of consumer protection.
Ms Papinniemi said this could water down much tougher, existing consumer protection in the UK and the OFT has expressed a preference for the standard to remain flexible to allow member states the choice to keep stringent rules in place.
UK online retail managers who took part in a recent survey by Bearing Partnership said they were confident that their teams will either grow or maintain this year and may even receive pay increases.
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