A new tool to manage and settle disputes in e-commerce will help protect consumers' rights as well as help businesses protect their trademarks.    The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) held a ceremony in Hanoi on December 18 to inaugurate online complaint and dispute management and settlement system in e-commerce and a signing ceremony “Say no to fake goods in e-commerce”, the second stage. Speaking at the ceremony, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Cao Quoc Hung said the use of e-commerce to sell fake goods has become increasingly sophisticated, not only in Vietnam but countries globally also. In order to promptly and effectively combat counterfeits in e-commerce and create trust among consumers, the MoIT issued a plan on fighting fake goods, goods of unclear origin and those violating intellectual property rights for the 2018-2020 period. The system is one of the six important measures to achieve the target. It is a public service portal, level 4, to share data, monitor and settle complaints by units in and outside the MoIT such as the Vietnam E-commerce and Digital Economy Agency, the Market Surveillance Department, the Vietnam Competition and Consumer Authority, and industry and trade departments, Hung said. According to him, the MoIT held the first signing ceremony on April 18 with e-commerce platforms such as Adayroi.com, Lazada.vn, Shopee.vn, Sendo.vn, Tiki.vn, making important contributions to fighting counterfeits on the Internet.   As part of the event, the MoIT held a signing ceremony ““Say no to fake goods in e-commerce”, the second stage with an aim to enhance coordination among its units and State management agencies in the effort. At the same time, it expects to enhance the role and responsibility of e-commerce website owners and trademarks for protecting consumers, prompt them to sell quality goods with clear origin. Chief of the Standing Office of the National Steering Committee 389 Dam Thanh The affirmed that the launch of the system suits the government’s orientations. He hoped that the new tool will gradually help consumers have a trustworthy address to protect their legitimate rights and interests, and equip firms with an effective mechanism to protect trademarks.

Head of the MoIT’s E-commerce and Digital Economy Department Dang Hoang Hai said that Vietnam is among the fastest growing e-commerce markets in the world with annual growth rate of 35 percent, which is 2.5 times higher than that recorded in Japan.

Last year, the MoIT successfully organised the Online Friday event to promote the development of e-commerce and digital economy in Vietnam. The programme attracted more than 11.9 million respondents and 1.6 million people scanning QR codes.

A study by the Institute for Global Leadership under the US-based Tufts University in 2018 showed that Vietnam ranked 48th out of 60 countries globally in terms of switching to a digital economy. Therefore, the country’s e-commerce sector has huge potential to further develop in the future.

However, several experts believed that there are many shortcomings of the e-commerce sector, including poor infrastructure, long delivery time, complicated customs procedures, high costs, and asynchronous order retrieval services, among others.

The MoIT’s survey revealed that 40 percent of online shoppeജrs were not satisfied with e-commerce platform delivery services. Besides, the platforms’ management policies have not kept up with the development of new business models, particularly those based on digital technologies.

The MOIT said the system comprises three major subsystems, including e-commerce management and supervision at online.gov.vn – the level 4 public service which has been upgraded. The information, warning, hotline and settlement of online dispute portal at chonghanggia.online.gov.vn and online report on e-commerce at baocao.online.gov.vn