Thailand to regulate online food delivery services
The Trade Commission of Thailand (TCC) released new draft guidelines on unfair trade practices between online food delivery service providers and restaurant business operators. The document aims to regulate online food delivery apps by the end of 2020. The new rules include limits on commission fees, advertisement fee, delayed credit terms, and standards regarding unreasonable delisting, among others. Most food delivery companies operating in Thailand are foreign startups. The call for regulating the sector came during the COVID-19 pandemic. Online food service providers became dominant and used their power to determine market dynamics, which has been considered unfair for restaurants. Service and advertising fees have been disproportionately increased by over 35% since the beginning of the pandemic. The draft guidelines require food apps to treat restaurants on a balanced basis.
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