The China Alcoholic Drinks Association has called for strengthened regulation of online alcohol sales platforms, urging a crackdown on behaviors such as forced 'choose one out of two' and flow limiting to force price reductions.
The association published an article titled "Promoting Innovation and Healthy Development of Platform Economy in the Alcohol Industry" on its official WeChat account on Saturday (July 11).
The article states that in recent years, liquor e-commerce, livestream selling, instant retail, and regional industry internet platforms have rapidly emerged. The network and scale effects of these platforms easily foster monopoly risks. Industry irregularities have become increasingly prominent, seriously depleting the brand value of Chinese liquor, squeezing the profit margins of small and medium-sized liquor enterprises, distorting the allocation of industry resources, and hindering the high-quality development of the liquor brewing industry.
The association calls for a focus on four core aspects: platform traffic, pricing, commission, and product traceability. It urges enhanced anti-monopoly and anti-unfair competition measures on alcohol platforms, and a ban on behaviors such as forced 'choose one out of two' and flow limiting to force prices.
The association advocates for the establishment of a cross-departmental collaboration mechanism involving market supervision departments, the Alcoholic Drinks Association, and platform enterprises. It calls for the integration of regional, online, and offline joint law enforcement, improving full-process traceability standards for alcoholic beverages, safeguarding the legal rights of livestream hosts, distributors, and consumers, and building a win-win scenario for all parties.
The association also calls on platforms to increase investment in research and development, laying out efforts in blockchain-based traceability, AI-powered consumer insights, smart warehousing and distribution, and industrial internet technologies for liquor. Additionally, it encourages leveraging cross-border e-commerce platforms to promote renowned Chinese white spirits and specialty fruit wines overseas, thereby enhancing the international competitiveness of China's alcohol industry.