Is “Mining” On Live Selling A Contract?

In Philippine Law, for a contract to be formed, there must be an offer, an acceptance of that offer, and a meeting of the minds as to the terms of the contract, especially over the object and consideration of such contract. In the case of Facebook Live Selling, the seller's announcement of the product and the code may be considered an offer, and the viewer's comment with the correct code may be considered an acceptance. However, there may be issues of meeting of the minds, especially if the terms of the sale have not been fully discussed or agreed upon during the live selling.

The first view on this states that the seller and the buyer in Facebook selling impliedly agree that the sale is on an as-is-where-is basis, i.e., what you see is what you get and no ifs and buts.

It is advisable for both the seller and the buyer to establish clearly the terms and conditions of the sale, such as the price, mode of payment, delivery, and other relevant details to avoid any misunderstanding or dispute. The quality of the product sold may be the primary impelling force on the party of the buyer and so the lighting, editing or filtering of the video should be taken into consideration. For example, the color of the clothes being sold may not be as expected by the buyer because the seller used a filter or a certain type of lighting to boost its appearance during live-selling.

Possible legal cases that may arise from a live-selling contract include collection of sum for the purchase price, breach of contract for violation of terms and conditions, and other legal actions that may depend on the circumstances surrounding the transaction. A buyer may think that s/he had been deceived into purchasing a product that does not meet his/her expectations or that may be different from what appeared during the live-selling.

Another factor that complicates this is the speed at which deals are closed during live-selling. By the mere sending of a comment, the sale may be considered perfected. It may be said that buyers assume the risks when purchasing through this method.