8month16On the same day, the State Administration for Market Regulation issued a notice soliciting public opinions on the "Guidelines for the Standardized Operation of Blind Box Business Activities (Trial) (Draft for Comment)". This notice sets clear regulatory requirements regarding the categories of blind box sales, forms of sale, selling prices, and drawing probabilities. Especially in terms of selling prices, Article 7 of the notice clearly states that "blind box operators should reasonably determine the price of blind boxes based on production and operating costs and market supply and demand conditions. Blind box operators providing goods or services should clearly mark prices and shall not sell goods at prices higher than the marked prices, nor engage in illegal activities such as non-compliant marking of prices, price gouging, or price fraud."
What impact will the new regulatory guidelines have on the industry? How will leading companies respond? Frost & SullivanFrost & Sullivan,Zhu Yiming, Executive Director of Frost & Sullivan Greater China, was interviewed by Shanghai Securities News. Jointly explore the impact of new regulations on the blind box industry .
Shanghai Securities News
The blind box industry has seen new regulations. Recently, the State Administration for Market Regulation issued a notice soliciting public opinions on the "Guidelines for Blind Box Business Operations (Trial) (Draft for Comment)". What impact will this have on the industry? How will leading companies respond? In response to some market concerns, reporters from Shanghai Securities News interviewed Popomart and several relevant experts in a timely manner.
The blind box industry will have national regulatory guidelines.
Judging from the draft for soliciting opinions, this regulatory guideline has made clear regulations on aspects such as the types of blind boxes, pricing, drawing probabilities, and even the protection of minors.
Popcorn Mart responded to reporters by stating that blind box sales are a popular form of marketing in the toy industry, and the introduction of standardized guidelines will promote the healthy development of the industry. Providing clear guidance at the regulatory level allows companies operating in accordance with regulations to have a clearer direction for development, which is conducive to creating a better business environment. "Currently, it is a consultation phase, and we will also actively communicate with relevant departments, offer suggestions, and believe that the industry can become more standardized under regulatory guidance, achieving healthy and orderly development and further promoting the growth and expansion of Chinese toy culture," said a company representative.
"Regarding the regulatory guidelines for the blind box industry, Shanghai's market supervision department has previously issued a local guideline. This guideline is issued at the national market supervision level." Guo Weihong, deputy director of Yingke Network's Data Security Compliance Center, told reporters that the current regulatory guidelines are still in the form of a draft for soliciting opinions. Once officially released, the blind box sector will have a policy foundation nationwide, and localities can directly follow these guidelines to regulate and guide the blind box market without special circumstances.
Guo Weihong believes that the regulatory guidelines are based on multiple superior laws, and therefore, any behavior that violates these guidelines can be punished and regulated by the relevant superior laws. This is of great significance for clarifying the red lines for industry development. 'Previously, there were participants in the market who used the guise of 'blind boxes' to conceal their illegal business purposes, disrupting the entire market order. Regulatory guidelines can help enterprises that truly focus on blind boxes to carry out compliant operations under legal regulation.'
Regarding the price-related terms that have attracted much market attention, Guo Weihong believes that this national guideline has been significantly adjusted and optimized compared to Shanghai's regional policies. 'The relevant terms actually impose constraints on two scenarios, one of which is the price increase for blind box products sold as regular boxes.' Guo Weihong pointed out that previously, many merchants...While launching the blind box, a clear box version of the same product was also provided, with the latter selling at a significantly higher price than the former. 'The same item becoming a means of price gouging through blind boxes is definitely not encouraged by regulatory guidance.'
"Previously, some merchants might use blind box methods to sell products. The original price of the product could be only one or two thousand yuan, but after being packaged into blind boxes, the selling price became five or six thousand yuan," Guo Weihong explained. This behavior, where there is a significant gap between the original price and the selling price, may now constitute price gouging or price fraud under new regulations. "It is recommended that the value of blind box products should not be significantly lower than their selling price."
The threshold has risen, accelerating liquidation.
"The concept of blind boxes was first introduced by Bubble Mart, a leading domestic pop culture company, and has since become popular among young people." Zhu Yiming, Executive Director at Frost & Sullivan, believes that,2019The year is known as the inaugural year of blind box games in China. With the popularity of blind box craze gaming, this form has been emulated by more and more industries, 'some of which use the guise of blind boxes to engage in deception against consumers'.
The reporter noticed that in recent years, various merchants have frequently launched blind box concept campaigns, selling out inventory to consumers through forms such as lucky bags and large gift packages.
"Especially at the end of each season, using one or two very expensive bestsellers as bait actually means that most gift packages contain unsold inventory," an e-commerce professional told reporters. Previously, a large amount of gift package content on the market was completely disproportionate to its price. Once these methods are abused, consumers' rights and interests are violated.
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"The standard guidelines will undoubtedly raise the entry threshold for the industry." Zhu Yiming believes that against this backdrop, blind boxes may break free from becoming a marketing tool. "For example, stipulating requirements for the type of blind box and the probability of drawing procedures will increase the cost for entrants. Coupled with profit restrictions, it will accelerate the liquidation of smaller, less regulated firms at the tail end, and industry concentration will rise."
"The specification guidelines have made clear norms for many processes in the industry, which is very important." Cheng Qi, a senior analyst on consumer industries at LeadLeo Research Institute, believes that the draft for soliciting opinions has clearly put forward norms for the blind box secondary market, requiring no hoarding or speculation. This is particularly important for the healthy operation of the blind box market.
"Artificial hype and hunger marketing are common tactics used by many irregular small manufacturers in the current market," Cheng Qi said. In the long run, the release of the draft for soliciting opinions is a boon for leading companies in the industry.Well, 'it is conducive to the operational development of leading enterprises and accelerates the liquidation of operators who rely on speculation for profit.'
Regarding PopMart, a company closely related to the market that has received attention, a person close to the company told reporters that the new regulations aim to manage disorderly behavior in the industry. 'For leading companies like PopMart, operations will not be greatly affected.'
"Overall, the regulatory guidelines focus on issues related to pricing and sales. For leading enterprises, non-compliance is still relatively rare." Guo Weihong believes that as a marketing tool, the price of blind boxes will inevitably have a certain gap compared to the value of the goods themselves. How to control this gap has become a key focus of future industry supervision. The regulatory guidelines need to balance consumer rights and interests with business operations.
*This article is reprinted from 'Shanghai Securities News'. Reporter Luo Maolin , Original title: The blind box industry is facing new regulations, and plugging marketing loopholes has become key. ">
