Japanese Legislature Passes Act To Regulate Big Tech Platforms

Digital platforms are under ever-increasing regulation across the globe, with Japan being among the latest countries to pass new legislation concerning their operations. On May 27, 2020, the National Diet of Japan enacted the Act on Improvement of Transparency and Fairness in Trading on Specified Digital Platforms (the Act).¹ The Act requires digital platform providers to (i) disclose certain terms and conditions to sellers and consumers, (ii) develop fair procedures and systems, and (iii) submit an annual report on their business operations to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI). It also empowers the government to assess compliance, publicize the results of its assessment, and take necessary actions to enforce compliance, including issuing fines for violations. The Act provides that it will become effective on or before June 2, 2021,² but the government is moving forward the enforcement date to Spring 2021.³