Thailand Public Hearing on Draft Guidelines for E-Commerce and Multi-Sided Platform

Between 19 August and 18 September 2025, the Trade Competition Commission of Thailand (“TCCT”) held a public hearing on the draft announcement titled “Guidelines for the Assessment of Unfair Trade Practices and Conducts Constituting Monopoly, Reduction of Competition, or Restriction of Competition in Multi-Sided Platform Businesses – Digital Platform Services for the Sale and Purchase of Goods or Services (E-Commerce)” (“Draft Guidelines”). The Draft Guidelines represent a significant development in Thailand’s competition law framework for digital platforms. 

The Draft Guidelines emphasize the importance of promoting free and fair competition in the multi-sided and e-commerce businesses, and provide guidance on trade practices that may be regarded as breaching the Trade Competition Act B.E. 2560 (2017) (“TCA”), particularly where platform policies may have effects that directly or indirectly lead to monopolies, or to reduction or restriction of competition. 

Concerns have been raised over certain practices in the e-commerce sector, such as requirements to participate in promotional campaigns, restrictions on the choice of logistics providers, or the use of customer data in ways that may place business operators (e.g., sellers on a platform) at a disadvantage. By addressing these issues, the Draft Guidelines seek to ensure that commercial dealings are carried out fairly, without coercion or discriminatory treatment, and supported by sound economic or business justifications.

The Draft Guidelines categorize prohibited conduct into price-related and non-price behaviors. Examples of price-related behaviors include below-cost pricing, rate parity clauses, excessive commission fees, and the use of ranking algorithms that manipulate the visibility of products or services without reasonable justification. Examples of non-price behaviors are algorithmic suppression of sellers, mandatory use of designated carriers, compulsory participation in recurring promotional campaigns (e.g., “double-date sales”), exclusive dealing that prohibits selling on rival platforms with penalties for non-compliance, discriminatory treatment, leveraging of user data, and collusive arrangements such as keyword bidding collusion.

These practices are deemed unlawful if they cannot be supported by reasonable justifications. The Draft Guidelines adopt an analytical framework similar to that used to assess abuse of dominant positions and unfair trade practices, which takes three key factors into account: (i) whether the conduct lacks economic, business, marketing, or technological justification, (ii) whether the conduct deviates from established trade customs or ordinary business practices, and (iii) other relevant factors.

The Draft Guidelines mark a milestone in setting clearer standards for regulating platform businesses in Thailand and demonstrate the TCCT’s commitment to safeguarding free and fair competition in the rapidly evolving digital economy. The feedback received during this public hearing will be critical to refining the Draft Guidelines to ensure they are comprehensive, practical, and enforceable.

The Draft Guidelines are intended to apply to overseas companies, as well as those based in Thailand. Additional details will be issued separately, to ensure that the Draft Guidelines are governed and enforced effectively.

How the Draft Guidelines will be applied and enforced in practice remains to be seen. It is essential for businesses to monitor regulatory developments closely, evaluate potential legal and commercial implications, and prepare appropriate compliance strategies. Our firm will continue to follow the progress of these Draft Guidelines and is available to assist clients with legal risk assessments and compliance with the forthcoming regulatory framework.

This article is intended merely to provide a regulatory overview; it is not comprehensive, and is not intended to constitute legal advice. If you have any questions on this or on any other areas of law, please do not hesitate to contact the authors:

Siriwan Nopareporn
Associate

Jarawee Suksngacharoen
Associate

Authors