Consumer goods EU Commission opens proceedings against online retailer Temu

The European Commission suspects the Chinese online marketplace Temu of violating EU law. The Brussels authority has initiated formal proceedings to examine whether the platform is taking sufficient action against the sale of illegal products.

In addition, the potentially addictive design of the service is to be investigated, as was reported in a press release on Thursday. However, the online marketplace is primarily accused of not doing enough to combat illegal products.

Certain rogue traders would reappear on the platform after they had been blocked, the Commission said. There was also a risk that the platform could become addictive through reward programs. This could have negative consequences for a person's physical and mental well-being. The Commission now wants to gather further evidence, for example through interviews.

Brussels has also taken action against other platforms

In a preliminary investigation, the Brussels authority had already requested detailed information from Temu about the measures taken to prevent the reappearance of traders selling illegal products on its online marketplace. The Commission also wanted information on how the risks for consumers are being contained.

The Brussels authority had already opened similar proceedings against X (formerly Twitter), Tiktok and AliExpress. Large online platforms are obliged by a new EU law on digital services (DSA) to take strict action against illegal content online.

Temu is very popular in Germany

After one and a half years on the market, Temu is already one of the largest online retailers in Germany. According to a survey conducted by Consumer Panel Services GfK, part of the opinion research institute YouGov, the shopping portal ranked sixth among the top online retailers in terms of the number of orders in the first half of 2024.

However, sales representatives, politicians and consumer advocates criticize product quality, unfair competitive conditions and a lack of controls, among other things. The platform rejects such accusations.

Trade relations with China are tense

The Brussels proceedings against Temu are taking place at a time when economic tensions with China are increasing. Additional EU tariffs on electric cars imported from China have been in force since Wednesday.

Prior to the EU Commission's decision, a sufficiently large majority of EU member states voted in favor of the punitive tariffs at the beginning of the month. Germany voted against the measure out of concern about a new major trade conflict and possible retaliatory measures against German manufacturers.

SDA