Text: U.S., European Business Groups Work to Establish Online Trust

U.S. and European business organizations announced April 23 that they are developing an international self-regulatory business code to build consumer confidence in online transactions.

BBB Online of the United States, The Federation of European Direct Marketing and Eurochambre Association of European Chambers of Commerce and Industry are working jointly to create an international seal or "trustmark" that will be distributed to participating businesses to signify their commitment to specific standards of good business conduct.

"The worldwide success of e-business depends on consumer trust," said Ken Hunter, president of the Council of Better Business Bureaus and BBB OnLine. "This initiative's goal is to create common standards, a consistent ADR (alternative dispute resolution) framework and a recognizable trustmark upon which every online shopper, no matter what their base of operation, can rely."

BBB Online is affiliated with the Better Business Bureau, a private U.S. organization founded in 1912 for the promotion of ethical business practices. BBB Online is taking that commitment to the world of e-commerce, according to its Web site, devoted to "promoting trust and confidence on the Internet" (www.bbbonline.org).

BBB Online has been engaged in a Reliability Program within its own sphere of influence in the United States. More than 9,800 businesses have qualified to display the BBB OnLine Reliability Seal, which is designed to ensure the consumer that these online enterprises operate in a trustworthy, dependable manner.

The Code of Online Business Practices is available in English, French, German and Spanish at http://www.bbbonline.org/code/code.asp

The following terms are used in the text:

EFTA: European Free Trade Area

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BBB ONLINE

BBBOnLine, FEDMA, Eurochambres Move to Create
International Trust Initiative for E-Commerce

Self-Regulation Project to Harmonize Codes of Conduct, Define Dispute Resolution Mechanisms, Use Recognizable International Trustmark

Arlington, VA and Brussels, Belgium (April 23, 2001) Three leading business organizations are launching an unprecedented international initiative to promote consumer trust in worldwide e-commerce through voluntary business self-regulation.

BBBOnLine, the Federation of European Direct Marketing (FEDMA), and Eurochambres, the Association of European Chambers of Commerce and Industry, are developing a new international seal or "trustmark" program to signify that an online business upholds specific business standards, including dispute resolution, regardless of its location.

The venture's mission is to help businesses implement consistently high online standards around the globe, using a single, internationally recognizable trustmark. This will encourage the development of e-commerce by reducing consumer confusion over the proliferation of trustmarks and conflicting standards from country to country.

Building on BBBOnLine's expertise in operating Internet trustmark programs and other Better Business Bureau, Eurochambres and FEDMA self-regulation programs that successfully serve the marketplace, the initiative will give member businesses and consumers the capacity to resolve cross-border consumer complaints easily through alternative dispute resolution (ADR).

To qualify for the seal, businesses will have to adhere to the initiative's business practice standards, which will be similar to the online codes already issued by BBBOnLine and FEDMA and still being developed by many Chambers in Europe. The Italian and Belgian Chambers of Commerce have already developed codes of conduct, and other Chamber networks are joining this movement. These codes of conduct will be consistent with standards recommended by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the Global Business Dialogue on E-Commerce (GBDe) and others.

"The worldwide success of e-business depends on consumer trust," said Ken Hunter, president of the Council of Better Business Bureaus and BBBOnLine. "This initiative's goal is to create common standards, a consistent ADR framework and a recognizable trustmark upon which every online shopper, no matter what their base of operation, can rely."

"Our three organizations have long championed both off- and on-line confidence among consumers," said Arnaldo Abruzzini, secretary general of Eurochambres. "We are working together to capitalize on our strengths and similarities. Developing common guidelines that can provide the international business community with an effective self-regulation tool is the logical next step. We will also continue to work closely with the European Commission, with the business community, and with consumers' groups on the e-Confidence initiative, whose clear aim is to build consumer confidence in e-commerce. We view our joint initiative as supportive of and consistent with those self-regulatory policy discussions."

BBBOnLine, FEDMA and Eurochambres expect to have the entire program in place by early 2002.

"This initiative promises broad acceptance from merchants and consumers," said Alastair Tempest, director general of FEDMA. "Once businesses understand the clear guidelines that will help them encourage consumer confidence in e-commerce, we believe many companies will comply. Consumers are eager to know how to identify trustworthy Web sites, and to be assured that the business has committed to abide by a code of conduct that provides a high level of protection for their purchases."

In the coming months, the three organizations will work toward establishing common eligibility standards for companies to display the international trustmark, and will ensure that internationally compatible ADR procedures will be available. The organizations engaged in the joint initiative look forward to continued cooperation with ongoing European and U.S. efforts to improve consumer protection for online shoppers.

The project is the first step in a much broader program. BBBOnLine, FEDMA and Eurochambres representatives are encouraging governments and businesses in countries outside the European Union and North America to harness the power of voluntary self-regulation to strengthen safe, successful e-commerce.

About Eurochambres (www.eurochambres.be)

Eurochambres, the Association of European Chambers of Commerce and Industry, was founded in 1958 and is headquartered in Brussels. Through its member organizations, the association represents 1,300 Chambers of Commerce and their 14 million member enterprises in 34 countries. This includes all European Union countries, all accession countries, EFTA, Russia, and several countries in the Mediterranean. Many European Chambers of Commerce and Industry offer arbitration, mediation and conciliation services-both in B2B and B2C disputes.

About FEDMA (www.fedma.org)

FEDMA is the European Federation for the direct/interactive marketing business dedicated to representing direct marketing in all its forms. FEDMA's objective is to protect and promote the European direct marketing business by creating, through representation, self-regulation and information, acceptance and confidence in direct marketing within a healthy commercial and legislative environment in which the sector can profitably operate and develop. FEDMA has more than 350 direct members and represents more than 10,000 companies indirectly through its national DMA members. The FEDMA code of conduct can be found at www.fedma.org/img/db/Code_of_conduct_for_e-commerce.pdf.

About BBBOnLine (www.bbbonline.org)

BBBOnLine brings the Better Business Bureau system's 89 years of experience in consumer protection and business self-regulation to e-commerce. Guided by its mission to promote consumer trust on the Internet, and working in concert with the 144 local BBBs in the United States and Canada, BBBOnLine encourages sound and ethical online business practices through its Reliability Program, the BBB Code of Online Business Practices (www.bbbonline.org/code/index.asp), and the BBBOnLine Privacy Program. Three hundred national and global corporations and 270,000 businesses at the grass-roots level support the Better Business Bureau system. More than 9,800 businesses have qualified to display the BBBOnLine Reliability Seal; 822 web sites have earned the BBBOnLine Privacy Seal.