China slaps US$3.7 million fine on Kuaishou over live-streaming e-commerce violation

Chinese regulators have slapped a 26 million yuan (US$3.7 million) fine on a unit of Kuaishou Technology, operator of the country’s No 2 short video platform, over multiple violations and misconduct in its live-streaming e-commerce operations, signalling tighter oversight of this market segment.Chengdu Kuaigou Technology, a unit of Beijing-based Kuaishou, was found to have committed seven breaches including failure to disclose information in accordance with the law, charging unreasonable fees on merchants and inadequate consumer protection, according to the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) in its WeChat post on Friday.That ruling formed part of regulators’ efforts to “crack down on chaotic practices”, said Shu Lingmin, deputy head of online transaction supervision at the SAMR, in a press conference on Friday.The Kuaishou unit said in a statement on Friday that it had accepted the penalty and would comply with regulations.The other breaches that the firm violated included failure to prevent intellectual property infringement, publication of illegal s and misleading commercial promotions, and assistance in selling wild animals, according to the SAMR.“We will strengthen compliance with the law, further enhance our regulatory standards … and work together with our platform operators to provide higher-quality services to consumers,” the Kuaishou unit said.The penalty ruling concluded the SAMR’s investigation, which started in September, into the Kuaishou unit, was part of a string of live-streaming e-commerce cases that were made public on Friday, according to the regulator’s post.