4 ms·

Amazon is available in hundreds of countries. Are they obligated to restrict trade based on the rules of each of those countries or just the US? At what point d

Amazon is available in hundreds of countries. Are they obligated to restrict trade based on the rules of each of those countries or just the US? At what point does a company that provides a platform for others to do things (e-commerce, content distribution, etc.) become responsible for policing how that platform is used? I suspect the answer is generally "at the point they are forced to do so".

codezero 12y ago
If Amazon can tell if a film or music has the proper rights to play in a certain region, they certainly can be held accountable with respect to what drugs are legal in any given region. Certainly they are aware of regional policy/infrastructure, so writing this off as "it's a global product," is not really productive.
- bostonpete 12y ago
  In the case of video streaming, Amazon is the seller, not just the platform, so of course they're responsible for ensuring that what they're selling is legal. In the case of 3rd party vendors on Amazon, they're just a platform.
  - codezero 12y ago
    Nonetheless, platforms do assume some level of liability. Anyways, my argument here is not that Amazon is liable or at fault, but that the standards in the US have created a system where people are able to make assumptions about products they buy, and in this case, Amazon as a platform fails them to some extent. One could say it is our own fault for accepting the system we have, and I don't intend to put blame on Amazon, the seller, or the consumer, I only meant to point out that Amazon can and will make locale specific adjustments to their products and it doesn't seem completely insane that they do here. They can limit the sale of particular drugs with respect to the location of the purchaser without inhibiting the same to others where that product is legal.

4 ms·

Amazon is available in hundreds of countries. Are they obligated to restrict trade based on the rules of each of those countries or just the US? At what point d

by bostonpete 12y ago

codezero 12y ago
If Amazon can tell if a film or music has the proper rights to play in a certain region, they certainly can be held accountable with respect to what drugs are legal in any given region. Certainly they are aware of regional policy/infrastructure, so writing this off as "it's a global product," is not really productive.
- bostonpete 12y ago
  In the case of video streaming, Amazon is the seller, not just the platform, so of course they're responsible for ensuring that what they're selling is legal. In the case of 3rd party vendors on Amazon, they're just a platform.
  - codezero 12y ago
    Nonetheless, platforms do assume some level of liability. Anyways, my argument here is not that Amazon is liable or at fault, but that the standards in the US have created a system where people are able to make assumptions about products they buy, and in this case, Amazon as a platform fails them to some extent. One could say it is our own fault for accepting the system we have, and I don't intend to put blame on Amazon, the seller, or the consumer, I only meant to point out that Amazon can and will make locale specific adjustments to their products and it doesn't seem completely insane that they do here. They can limit the sale of particular drugs with respect to the location of the purchaser without inhibiting the same to others where that product is legal.