DEFINITION

Distance selling describes the act of selling/buying that does not require the simultaneous physical presence of both parties.

IMPACT ON E-BUSINESS

All selling/buying on the Internet falls under this definition (see also e-commerce). If the buyer is a consumer, s/he enjoys special protection as is laid down in the Directive 97/7/EC on the protection of consumers in respect of distance contracts. For more details, see Consumer Protection.

RELATED ISSUES

Consumer Protection
B2C
e-commerce
Cooling off periods