BEIJING, April 17 (Reuters) - China’s market regulator on Friday fined and confiscated a total of 3.6 billion yuan ($527.32 million) from seven e-commerce platforms over food delivery safety violations, an official statement showed.
The companies fined include Pinduoduo (PDD.O) , Meituan (3690.HK) , JD.com (9618.HK) , ByteDance’s Douyin and Alibaba’s (9988.HK) food delivery service, Taobao Shangou.
Investigations showed the companies had failed to take necessary measures to protect consumers after failing to properly verify online food vendors’ licences and qualifications, the regulator said.
Pinduoduo, Meituan, ByteDance and Alibaba did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Food delivery in China has become intensely competitive over the past 12 months, with e-commerce giants Alibaba and JD.com aggressively pursuing market share by offering coupons and discounts on products including ice-cream and take-away coffees.
The bitter battle for so-called “instant retail” - goods delivered within the hour - has not only squeezed company profits but also drawn scrutiny from Chinese regulators who have repeatedly warned against “race-to-the-bottom competition” among food delivery firms.
($1 = 6.8270 Chinese yuan renminbi)

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- China’s market regulator fined seven e-commerce platforms a total of 3.6 billion yuan ($527.32 million) for food delivery safety violations.  
- The companies, including Pinduoduo, Meituan, JD.com, ByteDance’s Douyin, and Alibaba’s Taobao Shangou, failed to properly verify food vendors’ licences and qualifications.  
- Increased competition in the food delivery sector has led to aggressive market strategies, prompting regulatory scrutiny over potentially harmful practices.

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Chinese regulator fines, confiscates $527m  from food-delivery platforms