Counterfeits, dangerous products: AliExpress threatened with EU fine
The European Commission on Wednesday took a significant step towards imposing a substantial fine on Chinese e-commerce giant AliExpress. The Commission preliminarily found that AliExpress has not adequately managed risks related to the sale of illegal products, despite numerous improvements.
The Brussels-based regulator, acting as the EU's digital watchdog, believes AliExpress breached its obligation to assess and mitigate risks associated with the distribution of illegal products—ranging from counterfeits to items that fail to meet European safety standards.
This marks the first time the Commission has targeted this Alibaba subsidiary under the EU's new Digital Services Act (DSA), which came fully into force last year to strengthen protections for internet users.
In its statement, the Commission highlighted that AliExpress underestimated these risks due to the limited resources allocated to its moderation system. It also failed to correctly enforce its sanctions policy against sellers repeatedly posting illegal content. The regulator pointed to systemic failures that rendered moderation efforts ineffective and easily circumvented by malicious sellers.
AliExpress now has access to the case file and may respond in writing to the preliminary findings. Should the Commission's accusations be confirmed, the platform could face a fine of up to six percent of its annual global turnover and be placed under enhanced supervision until corrective measures are implemented.
The formal challenge announced Wednesday follows an investigation launched by the Commission in March 2024. However, it also acknowledged progress made over the past year, with AliExpress proposing improvements that the Commission has validated.
The regulator specifically noted that AliExpress addressed concerns related to monitoring and detecting illegal products—such as medicines, food supplements, and adult content that could harm users' health and minors' well-being. The platform's reporting mechanisms and complaint handling systems were deemed satisfactory.
Brussels also confirmed that AliExpress complies with legal requirements regarding advertisement transparency, recommendation systems, seller traceability, and data access for researchers.
'The measures taken today demonstrate the strength of the Digital Services Act in creating a safer online environment,' said European Commissioner for Technological Sovereignty Henna Virkkunen. She welcomed AliExpress's commitment to becoming a safer platform for its users. This article was translated to English using an AI tool.
FashionUnited uses AI language tools to speed up translating (news) articles and proofread the translations to improve the end result. This saves our human journalists time they can spend doing research and writing original articles. Articles translated with the help of AI are checked and edited by a human desk editor prior to going online. If you have questions or comments about this process email us at info@fashionunited.com
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Planes could one day run on thin air — here's how
Planes being fueled by thin air sounds like science fiction — but in the not-too-distant future it could become science fact. How? Thanks to a third generation of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) called e-fuel, or 'power to liquid' fuel. Experts say that the science is actually surprisingly straightforward. The main problem the aviation industry must overcome is cost. According to the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, e-fuels cost $8,720 per ton, compared to bio-based SAF at $2,365 per ton and conventional jet fuel at $830 per ton. Conor Madigan, CEO at Aether Fuels, explained that e-fuel is made by converting carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere or industrial emissions into carbon monoxide (CO) via direct electrolysis or in combination with hydrogen. The carbon dioxide and hydrogen can then be combined to create various hydrocarbon compounds that can be refined into jet fuel. Duncan McCourt, CEO of Sustainable Aviation, points out that when burned, it emits the carbon. That means it's entirely net zero if a renewable energy plant is used to make it. And unlike with bio-feed SAF, feedstock limits and land-use concerns aren't factors. The hurdle, Mr McCourt tells The Independent, is 'scaling it to commercial levels and doing so at a reasonable cost'. Mr Madigan explains further, revealing that the cost of e-fuel plants 'is high and the scarcity of the kind of hydrogen required under current policies restricts projects to smaller scale operations'. This, he says, 'leads to poor cost efficiency and very high prices to generate acceptable capital returns'. Mr Madigan continues: 'There are only two markets where policies exist to incentivize 'CO2 plus H2' fuels, the UK and EU, and they allow the use of only waste hydrogen or green hydrogen. 'Many companies have sought ways to reduce capital expenditure, but most approaches compromise yield in the process.' Mr Madigan explains that capturing CO2 from the atmosphere is 'very energy-intensive and therefore very expensive' but that this problem makes a smaller contribution to the price of the fuel. So, what's the solution? It's partly in the hands of politicians. Mr McCourt says: 'The cost of the energy required to produce hydrogen and capture carbon at scale is one of the primary challenges. 'Overcoming this will require significant investment and supportive governmental policy.' And would the aviation industry embrace 'thin-air' fuel? It would seem likely, with several carriers already experimenting with alternative ways to power flight. In 2023, Virgin Atlantic operated a cooking-oil-powered Boeing 787 Dreamliner from Heathrow to New York, and airlines including United, Emirates and British Airways have also used SAF.
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
EU countries reach deal on new defence funding programme
BRUSSELS, June 18 (Reuters) - European Union governments have reached an agreement on a 1.5 billion-euro ($1.73 billion) EU scheme to fund defence investments, although some complained that its 'buy European' provisions are too restrictive, diplomats said on Wednesday. Governments have wrangled for more than a year over the European Commission's proposal for a European Defence Industrial Programme (EDIP), part of a broader drive to re-arm sparked by fears of Russia following its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Much of the debate focused on eligibility. France pushed for strict 'buy European' rules to boost European industry while countries such as the Netherlands argued for more flexibility to buy arms from the United States, Britain and other nations. Under the final compromise, at least 65% of the costs of the components of an item funded under the scheme must originate in the EU or certain associated countries, with some exceptions. Ambassadors from the EU's 27 countries are expected to approve the deal on Monday, diplomats said on condition of anonymity. It will then be the subject of negotiations with the European Parliament before it can enter into force. A group of 10 countries - the Netherlands, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Slovakia and Finland - argued that the rules should have taken more account of an urgent need to boost Europe's defences. "We fully support the goal of enhancing European security and resilience through increased defence cooperation and investment," they said in a joint statement. "However, we face an urgent threat to European territory and interests." They said the EU defence industry "still depends - especially in the short to medium term - on critical components, technologies and know-how from like-minded third countries, in particular transatlantic allies". Despite their objections, the countries said they did not want to stand in the way of starting negotiations with the European Parliament. EU officials said the 1.5 billion euro budget for the programme is modest for the defence sector but the criteria were fiercely fought over as it may receive larger funding in future. ($1 = 0.8678 euros)
Reuters
2 hours ago
- Reuters
Exclusive: Mars' $36 billion Kellanova deal faces EU antitrust investigation, sources say
BRUSSELS, June 18 (Reuters) - Mars' $36 billion bid for Pringles maker Kellanova (K.N), opens new tab is set to face a full-scale EU antitrust investigation, people close to the matter said on Wednesday, a move that could require the candy giant to divest assets to address competition concerns. The European Commission, which acts as the antitrust watchdog in the 27-country bloc, is concerned about Mars' high market share in some products in some European Union countries, the sources said. Family-owned Mars is unlikely to offer remedies to assuage such concerns during the EU competition enforcer's preliminary review of the deal, which ends on June 25, the sources said. The Commission declined to comment. Mars and Kellanova did not respond to repeated emails for comment. Mars announced the deal in August last year that will bring together brands from M&M's and Snickers to Pringles and Pop-Tarts under one roof. There has been a wave of consolidation in the U.S. packaged food sector as companies seek scale to weather the impact of inflation-weary consumers cutting back on spending and shifting to private label brands. European retailers have voiced concerns about the deal, citing the power of large international suppliers of branded packaged goods and the high concentration levels in products such as breakfast cereals, carbonated drinks, confectionery and frozen desserts. They say such high market shares give large suppliers the power to impose restrictions and practices to retailers' detriment.
