So far, there are no guidelines published by Chinese authorities on the question of when a company
offers services or products in China. However, the wording is nearly identical to the wording of GDPR. Assuming that the purpose of regulating the extra-territorial scope of PIPL is similar to that of GDPR, and if it takes the same approach as GDPR does, it gives a first indication of what the offering means from the guideline on the territorial scope of the GDPR by the EDPB (Guideline 3/2018). However, it is expected that the Chinese authorities will publish their own guidelines, which, hopefully, will bring more clarity and certainty. Until then, factors that may be considered to result in an “offering of goods or services” to individuals in China could be:
- using languages used in China and offering payments in Chinese Yuan;
- using ads to address Chinese individuals or other marketing tools directed towards Chinese customers;
- mentioning addresses or phone numbers to be reached from China;
- using top-level Chinese domains;
- offering delivery of goods to China.