Update: The ministry of corporate affairs has said that the Competition Commission of India(CCI) is going to look into the anti-competitive conduct of online retailers. The retailers under scrutiny are Flipkart India, Amazon Seller Services, Vector e-commerce, Jasper Infotech and Xerion Retails. The government has also asked the serious fraud investigation office to file prosecution under the provisions of the Companies Act, 1956 and the Indian Penal Code against Goldquest International and its group company Questnet Enterprises and Abcindya Networks. The statement added that investigation reports with respect to Unipay2U group of companies and Speakasia Online are under examination. The department of consumer affairs is also considering inclusion of necessary safeguards for protection of rights of consumers of technology-based marketing e-commerce, telemarketing etc as part of the proposed amendment in the Consumer Protection Act, 1986. (Link here) The Ministry of Finance said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha on Friday that only 9 complaints regarding fraud committed by e-commerce companies have been received by the Indian government, and action has been taken in each case. A copy of the government statement is included below. Three observations, based on the Ministry's statements: 1. The e-commerce industry is hiding its problems very well: warranties not being honored, fake goods, non-delivery of products, delivery of bricks, wood and empty boxes. It's there, but not reported. 2. The complaints mechanism must be broken: 9 complaints is a remarkably low number, given the number of complaints we see online about fake goods or goods…
