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> -----Original Message-----
> From: David Goldstein [mailto:goldstein_david@yahoo.com.au]
>
Sent: 16 March 2002 01:00
> To: APPLe Mailing List
> Subject:
internet news - 15/3
>
>Gov't to regulate online auction sites
(Japan Today)
>The government decided at its cabinet meeting Friday to
amend a law governing trade of antiques to include regulations on >online
auction sites and operators to prevent the sale of stolen goods on the Internet,
government officials said. >http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&cat=4&id=206364Folks,
The
full news item is as follows:
Friday, March 15, 2002 at 17:30
JST
TOKYO — The government decided at its cabinet meeting Friday to amend a
law governing trade of antiques to include regulations on online auction sites
and operators to prevent the sale of stolen goods on the Internet, government
officials said.
The operators will be required to register their sites
with the government and display a seal of approval on their web sites if they
meet related standards by a national government watchdog. (Kyodo
News)
My 2 cents:
Some years ago, auctions in
Singapore were licensed by the tax authorities. With the e-auction model, the
law was scrapped so that there are now no licences needed for auctioneers.
Of course it all made sense then. But now, it appears that there was the pretty sound rationale for the old law: auctions have the potential for fraud. (In fact, it is the biggest area of online consumer fraud; it must have been the case for the offline world too.) The Japanese effort appears to be a recognition of the rationale.
FWIW, I reproduce a section of the Sales of Goods Act, much of which was imported wholesale from the UK. I know that lots of people who buy at auctions would want something like S.57(4).
Regards,
Ang Peng Hwa