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2026 "618" Observation: E‑commerce Promotions Move Beyond Price Wars to Efficiency and Experience

2026 "618" Observation: E‑commerce Promotions Move Beyond Price Wars to Efficiency and Experience

News2026-06-21

The 2026 "618" mid‑year e‑commerce shopping festival is undergoing a fundamental shift in direction. from platforms to merchants, from regulatory policies to technological applications, a quiet but profound transformation is reshaping this nearly two‑decade‑old consumer shopping event. The industry is moving away from undifferentiated competition and returning to a path of rational growth.

Merchants Shift from "Pursuing Scale" to "Protecting Profits"
The most notable change in this year's "618" comes from the merchant side. In the past, the primary metric for participating in major sales events was GMV (Gross Merchandise Volume), and many merchants found themselves in the predicament of "losing money for the sake of visibility." However, this year, more than 70% of brands have set net profit margin as their top corporate KPI, compared to less than 40% previously.

A clothing brand seller told the media: "Our No. 1 KPI this year is to protect profits. In previous promotions, we expanded across multiple channels simultaneously in pursuit of growth, only to find that while sales surged, profits were negative after accounting. This model of 'strategic losses' is no longer sustainable."

Sun Huaiqing, Chairman of Guangdong Marubi Biotechnology Co., Ltd., also stated clearly: "This year, all of our growth must be built on profitability. For businesses and channels that are loss‑making, even if they bring scale expansion, we resolutely will not pursue them."

When low‑price competition reaches its limit, innovation becomes the common choice for brands to break through. Data provided by Tmall shows that last year's "618" saw new products achieving sales of RMB 10 million across 26 categories; this year, that number has expanded to 53 categories, doubling year‑on‑year. Tmall stated: "Only new products have pricing power and can drive price bands upward. Imitation and homogeneous products can only fall into a vicious cycle of 'low quality, low price.'"

Platforms Eliminate "Involution‑Style" Competition
Browsing the "618" campaign pages of various e‑commerce platforms, the complex interactive gameplay of the past has disappeared. The multi‑layer stacking algorithms combining "cross‑store discounts + store coupons + category coupons + red envelopes" have been abandoned, replaced by standard features like "direct discount on each item," "official price reduction," and "immediate shipping."

This comprehensive simplification of promotional methods stems not only from consumer complaints about complex rules but also from regulatory guidance. In April this year, the "Rules on Price Conduct for Internet Platforms" took effect. On May 25, the Beijing Municipal Administration for Market Regulation held a centralized meeting with 17 major platform companies, explicitly requiring them to refrain from engaging in irrational large‑scale subsidy promotions during "618."

On June 16, the State Administration for Market Regulation issued compliance guidelines for "618" online promotions, clarifying six key compliance responsibilities covering merchant access, price order, platform rules, product quality, advertising content, and consumer rights protection. On June 18, seven ministries including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology jointly issued the "Action Plan for Promoting Collaborative Development of Large, Medium and Small Enterprises in the Platform Economy (2026‑2028)," explicitly calling for the regulation of "involution‑style" competition and the cleansing of the live‑streaming e‑commerce ecosystem.

Local regulators have also followed suit. The Guangxi Market Supervision Administration, together with multiple departments, held a administrative guidance meeting to strictly investigate irregularities such as AI‑generated fakes and false discounts, requiring platforms to maintain truthful and compliant benchmark prices and prohibiting illegal practices like price‑hiking before discounts and charging higher than marked prices. The Guilin Market Supervision Administration required local platforms to proactively shift from "low‑price dumping" to competing on product quality, service innovation, and user experience, and from "traffic first" to "quality first."

Major e‑commerce platforms have also chosen to extend their campaign periods: JD.com launched its promotion on May 6, with a full cycle lasting 47 days; platforms like Taobao/Tmall and Douyin all extended their cycles beyond 40 days. Industry ob note that the competitive focus of e‑commerce platforms has shifted from pure price subsidies to operational efficiency, ecosystem synergy, and long‑term user value.

AI Evolves from Auxiliary Tool to Decision Engine
This year's "618" is regarded by the industry as the first "AI‑native" e‑commerce promotion. AI is no longer a scattered application in isolated marketing links but penetrates the entire chain including product selection, marketing, customer service, logistics, and after‑sales.

A JD.com representative said that this year's "618" marks the first time JD has integrated AI across all scenarios and industries. Fifty‑two hours into the campaign, sales of AI home appliance and home products integrated with JoyInside grew 200% month‑over‑month. JD's digital human live‑streaming generated over RMB 70 million in sales within four hours of launch.

On May 11, Qianwen was fully integrated with Taobao. Users can now browse, compare, and purchase Taobao products directly within the Qianwen App; within the Taobao App, users can also use Qianwen's AI features for discount calculations, virtual try‑ons, and more. A Tmall "618" spokesperson introduced that more than one million merchants used AI tools to improve operational efficiency during the campaign, and by May 31, AI had been invoked over 3 billion times.

The "618 Consumer Insight Report (2026)" shows that AI has accelerated its accessibility and upgraded into a core underlying infrastructure for major promotions. Cao Lei, Director of the E‑commerce Research Center at the NetEco Institute, stated: "In the past, 'traffic was king.' Now, it's a battle of AI algorithms. Whoever controls AI dialogue, AI recommendations, and AI price‑comparison decision‑making will master the next generation of consumer shopping paths."

Shelf‑Based E‑commerce Returns and Consumer Rationality
Notably, shelf‑based e‑commerce is regaining consumer trust. The "618 Consumer Insight Report (2026)" shows that 60% of consumers chose shelf‑based e‑commerce platforms during this year's promotion, while only 10% chose live‑streaming e‑commerce. Wang Xin, Deputy Dean of the National Academy of Advertising, analyzed that this is mainly due to the stability and diversity of shelf‑based e‑commerce platforms; consumers, under a trend toward rationality, increasingly prefer independent searching and free price comparison shopping models.

According to data, the national online retail sales during this year's "618" grew 7.7% year‑on‑year. Consumer enthusiasm has not waned—it has simply found a more rational expression. As one consumer put it: "This year, e‑commerce platforms are all simplifying their rules. No more struggling through complicated discount stacking. This not only makes shopping less stressful but also allows merchants to save operational energy and focus on the products themselves."

Zhu Keli, Founding Dean of the National Research Institute of New Economy, pointed out that this year's "618" has seen mass consumption shift toward rationality and pragmatism. Consumption upgrading is landing on three major directions—green, smart, and domestic brands—and overall, the market is moving from a phase of bulk stock‑up consumption to a new stage of refined quality consumption.

Behind this transformation lies the combined effect of technological iteration, regulatory upgrades, and the evolution of market logic. As the e‑commerce industry moves away from low‑price involution and returns to business fundamentals, platforms and merchants that can lead the transition from scale‑driven expansion to value‑driven growth will gain a competitive edge in the new round of competition.

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2026 "618" Observation: E‑commerce Promotions Move Beyond Price Wars to Efficiency and Experience