The Electronic Commerce Act adapts new rules, that were introduced by the European Union with REGULATION (EU) 2019/1150 („the Regulation“).
The Regulation covers:
- the online e-commerce markets;
- the sharing platforms where business users operate;
- the application stores;
- the online search engines,
The business users, to whom the Regulation apply, should be established in the EU and should direct their offers towards consumers located in the EU.
Obligations include the need for clear, comprehensible and easily accessible general conditions. Providers should notify their business users of changes in the general conditions at least 15 days before the changes enter into force. During this period, each business user has the right to terminate its contract with the provider.
The Regulation determines the possibilities in which the platforms may restrict business users from offering the same goods or services on better terms elsewhere. Such a restriction is possible when it is economically, commercially or legally justified.
The Regulation also pays attention to the ranking of the offers of individual business users. In their general conditions, the platforms are obliged to specify in a clear and understandable way the criteria for ranking the individual offers.
The amendments to the Electronic Commerce Act provide provisions for the liability of the suppliers, which liability is exercised under the Bulgarian Code of Civil Procedure.
Users can bring claims to terminate any infringements of the requirements of Regulation, as well as seek compensation for any damages from infringements.
The changes also consider the possibility of out-of-court settlement of disputes through mediation. For the purposes of out-of-court dispute resolution, Online Service Providers must designate in their general terms and conditions two or more mediators for out-of-court dispute resolution.