모바일 앱 및 인앱결제와 소비자 철회권

Abstract

The provision about the Right of Withdrawal in Consumer Contracts under ACT ON THE CONSUMER PROTECTION IN ELECTRONIC COMMERCE, ETC. and CONTENT INDUSTRY PROMOTION ACT gives the consumer(or user) the right to withdraw. However, there is no clear standard between providers, stores, and users for the Right of Withdrawal in Consumer Contracts related to mobile apps and in-app payments. An app contract consists of a three-sided relationship between the provider, the store, and the user. In the case of paid app contracts, apps downloaded to mobile devices may be classified as real estate sales. But it is difficult to set a free app contract as a typical contract. Since in-app payments are paid, they can be regarded as having the nature of trading if they can have exclusive control(II). The provision about the Right of Withdrawal in Consumer Contracts under ACT ON THE CONSUMER PROTECTION IN ELECTRONIC COMMERCE, ETC. and CONTENT INDUSTRY PROMOTION ACT gives consumers the opportunity to unilaterally free themselves from the binding force of the contract without the provider's fault. Since ACT ON THE CONSUMER PROTECTION IN ELECTRONIC COMMERCE, ETC. is advantageous over CONTENT INDUSTRY PROMOTION ACT, the former takes precedence(Ⅲ). Since ACT ON THE CONSUMER PROTECTION IN ELECTRONIC COMMERCE, ETC. also allows digital content to be withdrawn, the Right of Withdrawal in Consumer Contracts also apply to app contracts. However, it should not be the reason for legal exclusion. The provider may give the consumer a method of trial use to exclude the right to withdraw(Ⅳ). Apple's and Google's terms also have rules regarding the Right of Withdrawal in Consumer Contracts(V). This Right for mobile apps and in-app payments will have a greater benefit for the provider due to the promotion of purchases, while there is a possibility of abuse.