Right of withdrawal for digital content - new legal situation from 28.05.2022
Online retailers who offer paid digital content must observe a change in the right of withdrawal from 28.05.22 onwards.
What is digital content?
This is content that is transmitted and made available in electronic form.
These include e-books, guides, recipes, instruction manuals, software, apps, videos, music, images, graphics, audio books and games.
What has to be considered so far?
The right of withdrawal is excluded for digital content subject to a charge if this has been made available to the buyer.
Why?
The customer can access, read, copy and use the content immediately after receiving the digital goods.
A revocation and a return with refund of the purchase price are therefore nonsensical.
Required implementation
Previously, the online retailer had to inform the buyer that the right of withdrawal would be lost upon delivery of the digital content if it was delivered before the end of the withdrawal period.
It is sufficient for the buyer to acknowledge this by confirming it, for example by clicking on a checkbox during the ordering process.
What should be considered from 28.05.22?
The previous requirements remain. The seller must therefore continue to inform the buyer that he loses the right of withdrawal upon delivery before the end of the withdrawal period. The buyer must confirm that he has taken note of this.
With the legal amendment, the seller must also confirm the expiry of the right of withdrawal post-contractually and store it on a durable medium.
Practical implementation
The seller could send the confirmation to the buyer with the purchase confirmation.
Storage could take place directly in the online store.
Most online store systems, such as Shopify, WooCommerce, Shopware or Oxid, will certainly provide a solution for this legal change.
In any case, as an online retailer you should comply with this legal change and start with the technical implementation in good time.