Abstract: Apart from their identity as standard market entities, platform companies have another identity, namely the organizers and administrators within the platform, which give them a unique “private power” distinct from public power. The dual order composed of the “legal order", which is dominated by legal norms, and the “platform order”, which is led by the platform's autonomous norms, mirroring the characteristics and governance pattern of the platform economy. As the “legal order” of internet platforms becomes increasingly stringent, internet platform regulators must adapt themselves to the demands of the era and find their proper role. Perfecting internet platform regulation involves understanding the pattern of this dual order and responding to the structural shift from “public power - private rights” to “public power - private power - private rights”. This requires scientifically allocating responsibilities and obligations between public and private entities, balancing the constraints on both public and private powers, creating a favorable environment for active participation by platform companies in the regulation, optimizing cooperative regulatory mechanisms, and, while adhering to fundamental principles, carefully adjusting the “platform order” to promote constructive interactions between the legal order” and the “platform order”

Key Words: platform governance; platform regulation; dual order; legal order; private power

Author: Zhou Hui, associate research fellow, CASS Institute of Law;

Source: 6 (2024) Science of Law (Journal of Northwest University of Political Science and Law).