Intern reporter Chen Tianxu
Once upon a time, "blind box" was just a sales model in the trendy toy circle with doll figures as products. With randomness and stimulation as the selling points, it attracted many young people to consume, and the " blind box +" business model also emerged quickly. The success and development of the
blind box model has expanded into an economic boom in recent years. In addition to trendy toys, blind boxes have appeared in the beauty, snacks, catering, stationery and other industries, as if "everything can be blind boxes". With the development of the ecology of the blind box industry, people have also discovered that many industries have experienced bad or even illegal chaos in the use of the blind box model. Recently, the state announced the "Guidelines for Standardized Blind Box Business Activities (Trial) (Draft for Comments)", which shows that the country's attitude to strengthen management of blind boxes affecting the personal safety and physical and mental health of young people.
Phenomenon: Abuse of blind boxes becomes a disaster
On the online shopping platform, a merchant sells live small animals at a low price in the form of blind boxes with the gimmick of "there is a chance to buy precious pets". The animals sold include cats, dogs, hamsters, turtles, etc., and animals often die during transportation. This "living pet blind box" that breaks the bottom line of consumers' morality has been criticized for a long time but has been repeatedly banned. It is called "blooded blind box".
The risk of food blind boxes as inferior products is increasing day by day. Recently, Ms. Cai, a consumer in Leshan City, Sichuan Province, complained that the child bought "blind bags" in a stationery store. After disassembling it, it was found that it was pre-packaged food such as lollipops and chocolates, and , but all of them have expired. According to the on-site investigation by the Leshan Jingyan County Consumer Protection Committee, this batch of "blind bags" containing expired food were not verified because the outer packaging was not marked and opaque, and the internal information could not be known. At present, this type of incident is not an isolated case. Due to the shelf life, sanitary quarantine and other attributes of food itself, consumers face greater risks when purchasing food blind boxes than other types of blind boxes.
stationery blind boxes induce minors to compare and consume. As the new semester is approaching, stationery stores around the school have successively welcomed students who are purchasing school supplies. Unlike usual, buying stationery blind boxes has become a new trend among students. A neutral pen blind box jointly launched by a stationery brand and a trendy toy brand has been sought after by students. Some students said that the students in the class would compare with each other who opened the blind box stationery more exquisite. The reporter's investigation found that compared with the same neutral pen, the neutral pen was sold in the form of a blind box and had a serious premium, which was seriously inconsistent with the value of the commodity economy. Some parents said that their children would use their pocket money to buy these blind stationery boxes, which would cost much more than buying ordinary stationery. The merchants' extensive promotion of stationery blind box products will also invisibly create a competitive mentality among students, which will lead to deformed consumption concepts for minors.
Suitcases and express blind boxes for sale lost items may be suspected of illegal. In recent years, many links have appeared on online shopping platforms where unclaimed suitcases are sold in the form of "blind boxes", and their content is similar to the "no express blind boxes" that have attracted attention before. Relevant experts said that such blind boxes may be a consumer fraud that covers the source of the product through blind boxes, or a private disposal of lost items, infringing on the privacy of the owner and suspected of illegality.
lottery blind box is suspected of a "consumption trap" of gambling nature. Mr. Liang, who just registered as a new user on a home e-commerce platform, welcomed a blind box lottery opportunity. After winning a piece of kitchen utensils, the platform prompted that it could get several blind box lottery opportunities through recharge. Under the continuous guidance of the platform, Mr. Liang recharged hundreds of yuan, but in the end he only waited for the shipment of one of the blind boxes. Mr. Liang said that this is not the first time his situation has happened, and he hopes to make consumers wary and not believe in this gambling-style blind box lottery. Blind boxes are known for their randomness and stimulation, but due to the regulatory gap, more and more platforms or merchants are engaged in gambling-like activities in the name of blind boxes.
Excessive ordering of food in blind boxes can easily cause food waste.With the popularity of the blind box model, the offline catering industry has gradually developed the use of blind boxes for marketing. Many catering merchants have added "blind box package" to their dishes, setting the price of blind boxes very low, and they are not given a single order, so they need to be purchased with other products. Or in the name of a joint popular IP, relevant souvenirs are launched to attract consumers to order excessive food to collect souvenirs, which ultimately leads to food waste.
A certain merchant’s blind bag of stationery Chen Tianxu/photo
New policy: Say no "blind boxes for everything"
On August 16, the State Administration for Market Regulation issued the "Guidelines for Standardized Blind Box Business Activities (Trial) (Draft for Comments)" (hereinafter referred to as the "Draft for Comments") publicly solicited opinions from the public.
The Draft of Opinions intends to stipulate that products with strict requirements for living animals, medicines, medical devices, special cosmetics, toxic and harmful items, flammable and explosive items, , living animals, express parcels, food, etc. in terms of use conditions, storage and transportation, inspection and quarantine, supervision and management, etc. shall not be sold in the form of blind boxes. Pet blind boxes, food blind boxes, unclaimed express blind boxes, etc. in blind box operations are intended to be banned.
In order to protect the rights and interests of minors and establish correct consumption concepts for minors, the "Draft of Opinions" intends to stipulate that merchants are not allowed to sell blind boxes to minors under the age of 8. When selling blind box products to minors aged 8 or above, you should confirm that the consent of the relevant guardian has been obtained through sales site inquiries or online identity identification. Blind box operators should make a significant reminder that minors aged 8 and above should obtain the consent of the relevant guardian when purchasing blind boxes.
At the same time, the blind box model of the catering industry will also usher in corrections. The Draft of Opinions proposes that catering service operators shall not induce or mislead consumers to order excessive food. If food operators use blind box products to carry out promotional activities during food sales and catering services, they should abide by the relevant provisions of the " Anti-Food Waste Law of the People's Republic of China ".
In order to eliminate the existence of "consumption traps", the "Draft of Opinions" also proposes that blind box operators shall not engage in gambling activities in the name of blind boxes or disguisedly engage in gambling activities. At the same time, blind box operators are encouraged to establish a guarantee mechanism to guide rational consumption by setting an upper limit of withdrawal amount and upper limit of times.
Reporter's Notes
Establish a high-quality and healthy blind box market
"Have you won the XX model?" Consumers who are keen on blind boxes have certain expectations for the blind box products they buy. If you can't buy the style you like, you may have a desire to repurchase. Due to the opacity and uncertainty of the probability of "hidden versions" extraction, consumers can pay several times or even dozens of times the normal price but cannot do it. Some bad merchants even take advantage of the consumer's psychology to price at will, adjust the extraction probability at will, and change the extraction results at intervals, resulting in frequent chaos in the blind box consumer market. The proposed introduction of new regulatory regulations on
is undoubtedly a shot in the heart for rectifying the chaos in the blind box market. The wild growth of the blind box economy has become a giant so far, with a significant impact on consumption, entertainment, etc. The establishment of new regulatory regulations is not only to help the industry eliminate the drought and preserve the essence, and to establish a better and healthier blind box market, but also to persuade consumers, especially young consumers, who are the main audience of blind box products, to consume rationally and form good consumption habits.
