B-to-C Contracts Concluded On-Line and Private Law. Differences and Similarities Between EU and China

In order to protect consumers who conclude on-line contracts – either directly with traders who supply goods or services via internet or through the intermediation of on-line platforms providers – both the EU legislator and the Chinese legislator have introduced in the last years special rules supplementing/derogating from the general rules on the formation of the contractual agreement as well from the rules specifically concerning contracts concluded by electronic means. The measures adopted and the approaches undertaken to reach this goal show relevant differences, both in terms of the contents of the substantive rules created in the two legal systems and in terms of the nature of the private-law consequences deriving from the infringement of the rules of conduct laid down in the special provisions enacted in EU and in China. The essay deals with such differences as well as with the similarities of EU law and chinese Law in this topic, and highlights the solutions adopted in Chinese Law which appear to be – in comparison with EU-law – more likely to ensure an effective private law protection for consumers involved in on-line transactions.