Tata Digital has put the launch of its super app on hold until there is more clarity on the proposed e-commerce rules, officials close to the development told Economic Times. The app is currently undergoing closed group testing in Bengaluru and was expected to formally launch later this month. This appears to be the first unintended consequence of the proposed e-commerce rules, which were primarily targetted at Amazon and Walmart-owned Flipkart. Like Tata, other Indian companies are likely to be impacted as well. Reliance and Adani, for example, will have to restructure their super app plans as well if the proposed rules are implemented as they are. What is the Tata super app? Think of a super app as a digital shopping mall, but with the potential for offering even more products and services. Tata first indicated its plan to launch a super app in August 2020 and said that the app will offer users a range of services offered by the Tata group, including food and grocery delivery, fashion and lifestyle, consumer electronics and consumer durables, insurance and financial services, education, healthcare, and bill payments. What are the proposed e-commerce rules? The government on June 21 proposed amendments that give the existing Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 more teeth. The changes include new rules to limit who can sell on marketplace platforms, the establishment of a grievance redressal mechanism, new display and labelling criteria for foreign goods, the prohibition of flash sales, restrictions on promotions, fall-back liability, among other things. These rules were proposed in…
