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The Competition Commission of India (CCI) slapped Google with Rs. 1337.76 crore ($162) million for anti-competitive practices related to Android devices last week. CCI not only imposed penalty on Google but also some restrictions. Read this article for more information.
The CCI had charged a pentalty of Rs. 13337.76 crore for anti-competitive practises related to Android devices. According to the press release, CCI notes that ” Google abused its dominant position in multiple markets in the Android Mobile Device ecosystem.”
Now, the CCI fined Google Rs. 936 crores for abusing its dominant position in the Android Play Store policies in less than a week. The Commission also issued a cease-and-desist order and directed Google to rectify its conduct within the timeline.
Charges Against Google
- The CCI stated that the tech giant Google enforced app developers’ use of its app payment system, noting the selling of in-app digital goods makes up an important means for developers to monetize their work.
- The regulator found out that Google is dominating in the markets for licensed OS (operating systems) for smart phones and the market for app stores for smart mobile OS India.
- If the app developers do not go with Google’s policy of using GPBS they will not be able to list their apps on the Play Store and, thus, will lose out on the vast pool of potential customers in the form of Android users.
Penalty
In relation to computation to penalty, the CCI noted that there were glaring inconsistencies and wide disclaimers from Google while presenting various revenue data points.
Accordingly, the CCI imposed a penalty of 7% of its average relevant turnover, amounting to Rs.936.44 crore upon Google.
The CCI has given Google 30 days to provide the required financial details and supporting documents.
Not Only India
Google has faced criticism globally for mandating that software developers using its app store must use a proprietary in-app payment system that charges commissions of up to 30% on purchases made within an app. Of late, the company has begun to allow alternative payment systems in more countries
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