Toward fairness in digital consumer protection: a comparative legal and socio-regulatory perspective on digital platform governance

Information from the abstract

The rapid expansion of digital platforms has transformed consumer markets and generated new regulatory challenges for consumer protection. Traditional consumer protection laws, originally designed for physical markets and bilateral contractual relationships, are increasingly inadequate to address the structural complexities of digital ecosystems characterized by algorithmic decision-making, data-driven business models, and cross-border transactions. This study examines the evolving role of fairness as a regulatory principle in digital platform governance through a comparative legal and socio-regulatory analysis of selected jurisdictions: Thailand, the United States, Canada, Spain, and Japan. In this study, fairness is understood as a normative legal principle requiring transparency of platform operations, accountability of digital intermediaries, and effective mechanisms for consumer redress in digital markets. Using doctrinal and comparative legal analysis, the research evaluates how different regulatory models address structural asymmetries between platforms and consumers. The findings reveal a global regulatory convergence toward fairness-oriented governance frameworks emphasizing transparency obligations, intermediary accountability, and accessible dispute resolution mechanisms. Based on this comparative synthesis, the study proposes the Regulated Digital Fairness Model (RDFM) as a conceptual framework integrating legal, technological, and institutional dimensions of digital governance. The study suggests that embedding fairness within digital regulation may strengthen consumer trust, enhance regulatory legitimacy, and support more sustainable digital market development, particularly in emerging digital economies such as Thailand.

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Related topics: European and International Contract Law · Digital Economy and Work Transformation · Digital Transformation in Law