China has launched its first ‘cyber court’ today in a bid to keep up with the number of mobile payment and e-commerce disputes.
China is home to 731 million internet users making it the world’s largest internet market. Residents of Hangzhou can register their complaints online and log onto their trial via videochat.
The Hangzhou Internet Court in Hangzhou, capital of east China’s Zhejiang Province will handle cases such as online trade disputes, copyright lawsuits and product liability claims for online purchases.
The cyber court will “offer regular people an efficient, low-cost solution to these new kinds of disputes that take place on the internet,” Du Qian, the cyber-court chief justice, told the official Supreme People’s Court news agency.
“Not only will this make lawsuits as convenient as online shopping, but it will also give online shopping the same degree of judicial protection as consumption at brick-and-mortar stores.”
The Hangzhou municipal legislature has also appointed the president, vice presidents and judges of the court.
For China’s 731 million internet users, e-commerce is a vital part of the government’s efforts to turn China into a consumer demand-driven economy.
E-commerce website Alibaba has its busiest day of the year on November 11. Last year consumers spent $17.8 billion (ÂŁ13.8 billion) in just 24 hours, more than five times the five-day desktop sales from Thanksgiving until Cyber Monday in the US last year.
