Regulate, do not limit, online shops

If the government is trying to regulate online shops, as per recent reports, it should take extreme care with the move. Online shops, which generate a large number of jobs, are quite venerable, says an article on People's Daily. Excerpts below:

This year is considered to be a tough one for job-hunting — about 7 million graduates are finishing their studies and leaving campus. While more graduates complain about the difficulty of finding a job, an emerging industry is offering more positions: The latest data shows at least 10 million online jobs have been created in recent years.

The low barriers to entry are one of the most important advantages of online jobs. Almost anybody, regardless of age, gender or education, can open an online shop, the size of which may vary depending on their funds in hand.

However, recent reports say the government is trying to regulate these shops. The decision-makers should be careful about this plan, because measures like collecting taxes and complicated paperwork might very possibly raise barriers to entry and hurt the vitality of the industry.

For the past three decades, China's economic development has always been accompanied by the development of such small economies, and any limits against them might curb the trend. So the government should help instead of limit online shops if they really want to regulate the industry.