Zhang Ting and his wife's company was investigated, how to accurately identify online pyramid schemes?

　　Zhang Ting and his wife's company was investigated, how to accurately identify online pyramid schemes?

　　■ Observer

　　MLM activities cannot make a comeback in a vest.

　　In recent days, the company established by the celebrity Zhang Ting and his wife has been investigated by relevant law enforcement agencies in Yuhua District, Shijiazhuang for suspected of engaging in pyramid schemes. This has aroused public concern.

At present, the case has entered the audit stage.

　　The main legal basis for law enforcement agencies to enforce law on pyramid schemes is the "Regulations on Prohibition of MLM Prohibition" issued by the State Council in 2005 (hereinafter referred to as the "Regulations").

Article 2 of the "Regulations" defines the concept of pyramid schemes, and Article 7 summarizes the main types of pyramid schemes, which are commonly known as pulling heads, charging entry fees and team remuneration.

Over the years, law enforcement agencies have basically determined whether relevant actions constitute pyramid schemes based on these regulations.

　　However, in recent years, social e-commerce with the help of networked interpersonal relationships has become an important supplement to traditional platform-based e-commerce, and the model of social e-commerce seems to have some external similarities with MLM.

For example, social e-commerce and MLM both use interpersonal relationships to conduct product marketing through acquaintance recommendations.

Under this circumstance, how to distinguish between social e-commerce and MLM in a scientific and reasonable manner has become an examination question for law enforcement officials.

　　To determine whether various online e-commerce marketing models constitute pyramid schemes, attention should be paid to the essence.

The essence here is to analyze whether the relevant business model is socially harmful in nature.

In other words, no matter what form the Zhang Ting couple’s business is in, as long as they conform to the nature of pyramid schemes, they are suspected of breaking the law.

　　The social hazard of a business model mainly refers to whether the relevant business plan is inherently fraudulent, such as advocating for nothing, propagating that it can "really earn", etc.; whether the funds flowing in the business plan and the profits generated are possessed Reasonable business foundation, based on valuable services, whether it is built on the basis of causing damage to the legitimate rights and interests of specific groups of people; whether the relevant business model is sustainable, and whether there is the last successor of the drumming game; in the business system Whether there are real and valuable commodities or services in the product, and it is not a prop commodity that seriously deviates from its actual value, but has an objective and fair market value.

　　Based on the above standards, combined with the provisions of Article 2 of the Regulations, it should be possible to properly distinguish between legitimate e-commerce and online pyramid schemes.

Of course, in order to prevent law enforcement officers from accidentally injuring legitimate e-commerce operators, the identification and definition of online pyramid schemes must be scientific and prudent, otherwise it may inhibit the development and enthusiasm of social e-commerce companies with positive socio-economic value.

This tendency should be avoided.

　　In addition, when defining the concept of pyramid schemes in Article 2 of the "Regulations," it particularly emphasizes the identification of pyramid schemes. It should not only look at the external characteristics of relevant behaviors, but also conduct specific behavioral consequences analysis.

In other words, the relevant behavior must be "for illegal benefits, disrupt economic order, and affect social stability" in order to constitute a pyramid scheme.

The emphasis on behavioral consequences in the legislative definition of pyramid schemes is an indispensable reference factor for determining behavioral attributes.

　　Therefore, when cracking down on online pyramid schemes, on the one hand, law enforcement agencies must be vigorous and vigorous, and they must not allow pyramid schemes to change into a vest to evade legal sanctions; on the other hand, they also need to be cautiously identified to avoid accidentally injuring legitimate e-commerce operators.

　　□Xue Jun (Professor of Law, Peking University)