E-commerce in India


Introduction : India has an internet user base of about 250.2 million as of  June 2014. The penetration of e-commerce is low compared to other markets like the United States and the United Kingdom but is growing at a much faster rate with a large number of new entrant.

India Scene : 70 percent of the total online trade is related to the travel industry. In the commodity segment, apparel, and book are the major items. There are more than one dozen leading players in the Indian e-commerce market, different products. Major entities are Flipkar (Book, Electronics, Clothes etc), Amazon (Book, ebooks, Electronics, Clothes etc), Jabong (Clothing), Myntra (Clothing etc), Snapdeal (Electronics, Daily used products etc), Urban Ladder (Furniture), Book My Show (Booking Service), Goibibo (Travel), Make My Trip (Travel), Amazon India (Daily consumer goods, Book, Electronics etc)

The Darker Side : Legal issues are generally ignored by e-commerce websites. This might change in the near future as foreign companies and e-commerce portals would be required to register in India and comply with  the Indian laws. E-commerce website dealing with nutraceuticals, Bitcoin, Ayurveda products, online payment, online poker, etcc.  Are violating the Indian laws. Enforcement Directorate (ED) of India has already initiated legal actions against companies dealing with bitcoins in India. Tax liability of foreign companies like Google, Facebook, etc. is also under consideration in India. Demands for introducing suitable provision to under consideration in India. Demands for introducing  suitable provision to regulate taxation, anti-commerce practices, and predatory pricing of the Indian and foreign e-commerce website have raised.