People's Livelihood Direct Vehicle | Promoting Blind Box Strengthening Compliance Governance The State Administration for Market Regulation Issued Guidelines for Blind Box Business Behavior

Beijing, June 15th (Xinhua News Agency) Question: Promoting Blind Box Strengthening Compliance Governance. The State Administration for Market Regulation has issued guidelines for the standardized operation of blind boxes

Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhao Wenjun

On the 15th, the State Administration for Market Regulation issued the "Code of Conduct for Blind Box Operations", which clarified the list of prohibited sales for blind box operations, drew a red line for blind box operations, and promoted blind box operators to strengthen compliance governance.

In recent years, blind box related products have been favored by many young consumers, and the blind box business model is mainly concentrated in the field of trendy toys. With the rapid fermentation of the "blind box+" business model, the field of selling goods or providing services through blind boxes is still increasing. At the same time, the problems of excessive marketing, opaque information, false advertising, "three no" products, and inadequate after-sales service in the blind box operation process have gradually become prominent, and need to be standardized and guided.

On the basis of summarizing local practical experience, the State Administration for Market Regulation has formulated guidelines based on relevant laws and regulations and the characteristics of blind box business behavior. By establishing guiding normative measures, it protects the legitimate rights and interests of consumers and promotes the sustainable and healthy development of blind box related industries.

In response to issues such as false advertising, infringement of consumer's right to know, inducement of consumption, "three no's" products, inadequate after-sales service, and "overbearing clauses" that have been reported by the public, a clear list of prohibited sales for blind box operations has been established. Drugs, medical equipment, live animals, flammable and explosive materials that are not suitable for entering the blind box field are not allowed to be sold in blind box form; Make restrictive statements regarding cosmetics and food that affect the health of the people.

The Consumer Rights Protection Law stipulates that consumers have the right to know the true situation of the goods or services they purchase or use. Although the blind box business model has certain randomness characteristics, it cannot be used as an excuse to avoid the obligations that should be assumed. Blind box operators should disclose necessary information related to the business process and minimize information asymmetry with consumers as much as possible.

In response to this, the guidelines require blind box operators to prominently disclose key information such as the product value, extraction rules, and extraction probability of the items inside the blind box to the public, ensuring that consumers are aware of the true situation before making a purchase, and shall not engage in false advertising or manipulating the extraction probability. Encourage blind box operators to guide rational consumption by setting extraction time, extraction amount limits, and frequency limits, and consciously promise not to hoard, hype, or directly enter the secondary market.

In terms of protecting minors, strict age restrictions have been imposed on blind box sales targets, requiring them not to sell to minors under the age of 8. Blind box operators are also required to take effective measures to prevent minors from becoming addicted and protect their physical and mental health. Encourage relevant local departments to introduce protective measures and standardize the sales model of blind boxes around primary school campuses, including distance and content, to promote the purification of the consumption environment around schools.

The guidelines clearly prohibit gambling, distorting history, feudal superstition, obscene pornography, terrorist violence and other content that violates social morality and public order and good customs in blind box operations, and promote the promotion of excellent traditional Chinese culture.

According to the introduction, blind box operation belongs to a new form and model of consumption, with complex and diverse specific forms. Although the guidelines provide a general definition, whether it belongs to blind boxes can easily lead to cognitive ambiguity, which needs to be judged in combination with practice. For example, if food is randomly shipped with only different outer packaging, or if the food ingredients are determined but the shape is different, it is not enough to make consumers have extra expectations for random shipping and should not be considered as blind boxes. Although the guidelines do not provide complete prohibitive provisions for food and cosmetics, they specifically emphasize that operators should fully fulfill their duty of care and avoid safety and waste risks associated with selling food and cosmetics in blind boxes.

The operation of blind boxes involves multiple fields and industries. Market supervision departments and relevant industry regulatory departments shall fulfill their regulatory and law enforcement responsibilities in accordance with their respective responsibilities. Guiding and encouraging social governance, guiding broad participation from all sectors of society, promoting self-restraint and honest operation of blind box operating enterprises, and striving to build a social governance pattern of "enterprise autonomy, industry self-discipline, social supervision, administrative supervision, and consumer participation".