European Commission Opens Probe Into Alibaba's AliExpress

By Kimberley Kao

The European Commission has launched an investigation into e-commerce platform AliExpress, owned by Chinese technology giant Alibaba, on concerns the company isn't taking adequate measures to prevent the distribution of illegal goods and content online.

The commission, the European Union's executive arm, said Thursday that it will probe AliExpress for possible violations of the Digital Services Act in areas such as risk management, content moderation and complaint handling, transparency of advertising and recommender systems, trader traceability and researcher data access.

The commission in November asked AliExpress for more details on measures it was taking to protect consumers online.

"After the formal opening of proceedings, the commission will continue to gather evidence, for example by sending additional requests for information, conducting interviews or inspections," it said Thursday.

European Commission Executive Vice President Margrethe Vestager said on X that the investigation will in particular "check whether AliExpress may have failed to prohibit selling of risky products for consumers' health (i.e. fake medicines, food), especially for minors."

AliExpress said Friday that it has been working with relevant authorities to ensure it complies with applicable standards.

"AliExpress is committed to creating a safe and compliant marketplace for all consumers," a company spokesperson said in an email response.

In 2023, AliExpress was designated as a "very large online platform" under the EU's Digital Services Act after the company declared it had 104.3 million monthly active users in the bloc. Four months after its designation, AliExpress had to start complying with a series of rules in the new law.

Write to Kimberley Kao at kimberley.kao@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 15, 2024 03:08 ET (07:08 GMT)

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