Establishment of an International Legal Framework for Cross-Border Electronic Commerce Rules: Dilemmas and Solutions

Abstract

Cross-border electronic commerce is of great strategic significance to global economic integration. However, different rates of development in electronic commerce, and significant differences in interest rates among nations and regions, make it hard to unify cross-border electronic commerce rules at an international level. This is especially reflected in the opposite propositions of the US and the European Union (EU) on the application of rules for products that include digitally delivered content within the World Trade Organization (WTO). This paper examines the dilemma of cross-border electronic commerce in international law within the framework of the WTO, United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). After examining the relevant legal systems in the US and the EU, and analysing conflicts of interest in the business rules related to cross-border electronic commerce between the US and the EU, this paper concludes that, in order to promote the development of cross-border electronic commerce, domestic private laws relating to electronic commerce must be improved, and based on an international legal framework designed to increase the predictability and certainty in business activities, which would be achieved by greater international cooperation.