Google Vs. App developers – Madras High Court refuses to intervene in the terms of Google’s Play Billing System on technical grounds

In a significant legal development, the division bench of the Madras High Court (MHC) vide its judgment dated 19th January 2024, upholding the judgment pronounced by the single bench of the same High Court on 3rd August 2023 ,  held that the High Court lacks jurisdiction on the original side to admit a civil suit…

Supreme Court of India reaffirms competitive neutrality principle -holds that Government Companies are not outside the preview of the Competition Act

“Competitive neutrality” meaning creating a level playing field between public and private sector is a bedrock of modern competition laws across the Globe. For instance, in Europe, there are special provisions for scrutiny of “State Aid” in the form of Article 107 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). Unfortunately, while redesigning…

GOOGLE LOSES APPEAL AGAINST CCI’s “ANDROID ORDER” IN INDIA -NCLAT UPHOLDS THE CCI DECISION ON GOOGLE’S ABUSE OF DOMINANCE BUT WITH SOME CAVEATS ON REMEDIES

Google has tasted another setback in India in its fight with the Antitrust regulator, Competition Commission of India (“CCI/Commission”). The appeal filed by Google against the CCI last order dated 20.10.2022 has been dismissed on merits and, except for some reliefs on some of the market correction directions issued by the CCI in its said…

CCI ORDERS SECOND INVESTIGATION AGAINST IREL FOR ABUSE OF DOMINANT POSITION

Competitive neutrality is the bedrock of modern competition law and the Indian Fair market regulator, the Competition Commission of India (“Commission/CCI”) has been following this principle in most cases and has penalized the errant public sector undertaking (PSU) in the past.   Following the said trend, vide its order dated 18.10.2022 the Commission has ordered…

INTEL SUFFERS HUMILATING DEFEAT IN INDIA -WRIT PETITION CHALLANGING CCI ORDER DIRECTING INVESTIGATION DISMISSED WITH COST OF INR ONE MILLION BY KARNATKA HIGH COURT

I The Karnataka High Court at Bangalore, vide its judgment dated 23 August 2022 came down heavily on Intel Inc. USA and its Indian subsidiary, the Intel Technology India Pvt Ltd. (in short, Intel) for holding the investigation against its India specific warranty policy by dismissing  the writ petition filed by Intel with a heavy…

WhatsApp gets temporary relief – NCLAT upholds the earlier CCI decision against any abuse of dominance by WhatsApp’s data privacy policy

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (‘NCLAT’), vide its order dated 2nd August 2022, has upheld the earlier order dated 1st June 2017  of the Competition Commission of India (‘CCI’) where it found that the change in terms of service including the privacy policy of WhatsApp particularly concerning sharing of user data with Facebook (now…

Bombay High Court revives the jurisdictional tussle between CCI and TRAI/TDSAT –again stays CCI order directing investigation against STAR TV for alleged abuse of dominance

Who should first decide a dispute relating to unfair terms of business between Multisystem Operator (MSO) and a TV Channel regarding discriminatory discounts by the later? Should it be the Sector regulator, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) or the Fair Market Watchdog, the Competition Commission of India (CCI)? Should CCI be constrained from…

CCI directs Investigation against BookMyShow for allegedly abusing its dominant position through exclusive contracts with Cinemas

Here is another blow for the e-commerce giants operating in Indian markets. The fair market watchdog, the Competition Commission of India (“CCI/Commission”), has decided to inquire into the unfair market conditions allegedly prevailing in the market for online booking of movie tickets in India. After directing investigation against MakeMyTrip and OYO , the CCI has…