E-commerce games

E-commerce games

Issue:

• India decided to stay out of the WTO e-commerce negotiations announced by about 75 members at the World Economic Forum in Davos

 Negotiation agendas:

• Free flow of data located on computer servers without data localization requirements
• Permanent moratorium on customs duties
• Non-disclosure of source code
• Prohibition of forced technology transfer

Reasons for India opted to stay out of E-commerce negotiation:

• Not to be part of any plurilateral talks because such initiatives strike at the very root of multilateralism
• India’s huge data reserve and its impact on real economy and management of data without compromising privacy and security considerations are still in progress
• RBI’s recent policy mandating data localization through local servers would be challenged in such negotiation
• Unsettled E-commerce regulations especially those related to foreign direct investment: marketplace and inventory model

Problems with E-commerce:

• Highly asymmetrical space with a few dominant players having the potential to distort a level playing field
• Definition and Meaning of e-commerce varies from one country to the other
• E-commerce rules are yet at nascent stage

Way forwards:

• India should manage its huge precious data resource on its own terms
• Status-quo on e-commerce should be maintained till developing countries understand what is at stake in the area of global e-commerce rule-making
• Provide weight to India similar stand on e-commerce issues at ongoing talk of RCEP
• China is a proponent of e-commerce negotiations both at the WTO and RCEP is another reason for India to step carefully