Indian regulatory authority fines Google ₹1337.76 crores for anti-competitive practices | Digit

An Indian regulatory body has fined alphabet-owned Google Rs. 1337.76 crores for anti-competitive practices. It is a major setback to the company as it has been proactive in the region for the past couple of years. As per Counterpoint, 97% of India’s 600 million smartphone users are operating on Android devices. It is also important to note that the company has pumped a massive fortune into Indian companies functioning in the country, like Jio and Airtel. 

CCI devised five markets to investigate Google’s dominance

The Competition Commission of India considered five relevant markets to investigate Google and set up an inquiry for the same. During the assessment that began about three and a half years ago, the body has concluded that Google is dominant in all the relevant markets and has imposed a penalty of Rs. 1337.76 crores on the California-based search giant. For your reference, the relevant markets investigated by the CCI are mentioned below. 

• The market for licensable OS for smart mobile devices 
• The market for app store for Android smart mobile OS 
• The market for general web search services 
• The market for non-OS specific mobile web browsers 
• The market for online video hosting platforms (OVHP) 

Further, CCI has also issued a set of guidelines for the company. The guidelines state that manufacturers should have the right to choose from Google’s proprietary apps that are preinstalled on smartphones. Second, the body says that licensing of Play Store should not be linked with preinstalling Google search services on a smartphone. Third, CCI says that Google shall not deny its Play Services’ API access to competitors, developers or OEMs. Additionally, the company cannot incentivise or obligate OEMs to sell devices based on Android services. 

Here is how the regulatory authority defines Apple’s business in comparison to Google

Readers will find it interesting that the Competition Commission of India defines Apple’s business. The regulatory authority states, “Apple’s business is primarily based on a vertically integrated smart device ecosystem which focuses on the sale of high-end smart devices with state-of-the-art software components.” Isn’t that too sweet? On the other hand, the authority found Google’s business “to be driven by the ultimate intent of increasing users on its platform so that they interact with its revenue earning service,” which is Google Search, where the company earns by showing ads.