Online platforms: Intermediaries?
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Senior Associate
France
As a senior associate in our Paris IT, commercial and dispute resolution teams, and a member of the Paris Bar, I advise our clients on both contentious and non-contentious matters.
Partner
France
I'm a partner in our international Commercial group, based in Paris, where I provide our clients with strategic commercial advice.
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Wish and Getaround, platforms acting as intermediaries between product or service sellers and consumers, have been sanctioned by the French authorities for unfair practices.
Getaround
Getaround connects vehicle owners (both professionals and individuals) with individuals looking to rent a vehicle. The Parisian Directorate of the DGCCRF noted that it failed to fulfil its obligations of fair, clear, and transparent information, as required of online platforms (Article L111-7 of the Consumer Code).
Specifically, it noted (i) a failure to inform consumers of their right to register on the do-not-call list, (ii) a lack of easy, direct, and permanent access to the platform's contact information, (iii) deceptive commercial practices regarding the extent of its commitments that do not adhere to clauses written in its terms of use, and (iv) a deceptive commercial practice claiming that a specific Getaround partner is independent and labelled by the state when it is not.
Observing this approach, the DGCCRF ordered it to cease its deceptive commercial practices.
Wish
A check conducted by the DGCCRF against the e-commerce platform WISH in 2021 resulted in findings of non-compliance and danger posed by certain products. Seeing that WISH had not stopped deceiving French consumers, the DGCCRF ordered search engines to dereference the WISH application and website in France.
WISH challenged the DGCCRF's orders before the Administrative Court of Paris, which dismissed WISH’s requests. The Court found that it actively benefited from its role as a platform to deceive consumers through its communication. Furthermore, it was negligent in identifying, monitoring, and recalling products. For example, the "verified by Wish users" badge applied to certain products could lead buyers to believe that the product quality was verified, when in fact no verification was conducted.
While this judgment could be subject to appeal, it imposes accountability on platforms in marketing illicit products through their communication.
As a consequence, platforms, under the guise of their intermediary role, cannot evade their obligations to consumers.
