Market Supervision and Administration Bureau: Actively Advancing Investigation into Food Delivery Platform Competition

Source: Economic Information Daily Author: Wang Wenbo

The State Administration for Market Regulation announced on January 9th that it would investigate and assess the market competition status of the food delivery platform service industry. Regarding the latest progress of the investigation, Wang Qiuping, spokesperson for the State Administration for Market Regulation and director of the News and Publicity Department, stated that they are currently following the established plan to accelerate the relevant investigation and assessment work.

At a routine press conference held recently for the first quarter, Wang Qiuping made the above response. She explained that the State Administration for Market Regulation has, in cooperation with the members of the State Council Anti-Monopoly and Anti-Unfair Competition Committee, conducted on-site investigations of relevant food delivery platforms to comprehensively collect information; organized discussions with merchants, industry associations, and platform operators; and conducted face-to-face interviews to broadly understand the concerns and demands of platform merchants, delivery riders, consumers, and other stakeholders.

According to reports, earlier this year, the Office of the State Council Anti-Monopoly and Anti-Unfair Competition Committee announced that it would conduct investigations and assessments of the market competition status of the food delivery platform service industry in accordance with the Anti-Monopoly Law. The purpose is to address issues such as “subsidy competition, price wars, and flow control,” express regulatory concerns, evaluate monopoly risks, and standardize market order.

“Next, we will continue to use on-site inspections, interviews, discussions, questionnaires, and other methods to deeply understand the competitive behavior of food delivery platforms, fully listen to the opinions of platform operators, new employment groups, consumers, and other parties, systematically analyze the market competition situation, organize analysis and demonstration, transmit regulatory pressure, and study and propose corresponding measures,” Wang Qiuping said.

Additionally, it is understood that the “List of Key Industrial Products for Online Sales (2026 Edition)” (hereinafter referred to as the “List”) will be publicly solicited for opinions soon. At the end of last year, the State Administration for Market Regulation issued the “Regulations on the Supervision and Administration of Quality and Safety of Key Industrial Products for Online Sales,” further detailing and clarifying the quality and safety responsibilities and obligations of e-commerce operators in the online sales of key industrial products. The “List” is a key supporting document for these regulations, defining the specific scope of key industrial products for online sales.

It is introduced that the compilation of this “List” mainly considers the following factors: First, focusing on products with high online sales, prioritizing industrial products with large sales, broad audiences, and frequent consumer use, such as electric water heaters and toys; second, targeting quality and safety pain points, focusing on products with potential safety hazards, high non-compliance rates in supervision and spot checks, and those prone to causing personal injury or property damage, such as electric bicycles and household gas stoves; third, emphasizing operability and effectiveness, fully considering the technical capabilities of e-commerce platforms in review and inspection processes to ensure that requirements can be implemented, such as safety helmets and portable power banks with code verification.

The State Administration for Market Regulation stated that the “List” will provide clear and explicit guidance for e-commerce operators selling key industrial products, which will further promote innovation and healthy development of the platform economy.

Industry analysts believe that from investigating and assessing the market competition status of food delivery platforms to publicly soliciting opinions on the “List,” the regulatory authorities’ approach of “regulation and development in tandem” in the platform economy field is evident. It signals a continued effort to regulate platform economic competition order and strengthen the supervision of online transaction quality and safety.

(Edited by: Wen Jing)