The Competition Commission of India (CCI), the country’s antitrust watchdog, told a court that a law, which calculates fines based on a company’s global turnover, will discourage breaches by multinationals, while opposing Apple’s challenge to the measure, according to a Reuters report.
In November last year, Apple requested that the judges strike down the 2024 law, which could also affect multinational companies such as Pernod Ricard, Publicis, Amazon, and other foreign firms under antitrust investigation, the report said.
The law “aligns Indian competition law enforcement with established international practice”, the report cited the CCI’s statement from a 15 December court filing, which is not publicly accessible, as it provided a detailed rationale for the first time.
Using India-specific turnover solely as the basis to calculate penalties, especially for global digital firms, fails to deter the impugned behaviour, the report said, citing the regulator.
“This approach ensures that penalties retain real deterrent value in complex, digital and cross-border markets, rather than becoming nominal or easily absorbable for large multinational players,” the CCI said in the filing seen by the news agency.
Livemint could not independently verify the report.
Apple, in its lawsuit, said that the law, which is based on practices in the European Union, may result in disproportionate fines for breaches that occurred only in India.
The company is concerned that it might face a fine of up to $38 billion if the global turnover metric is applied, following a CCI investigation that revealed it had misused its dominant position on its app store. Apple has denied the allegations.
What does CCI say?
Apple alleged that the competition body had illegally used the new law retrospectively in another case, the report said.
The CCI rejected Apple’s claim, noting that it has always had the authority to impose a fine of up to 10% of a company’s turnover, and the changes in law simply clarified how it defines turnover.
“Clarificatory provisions operate retrospectively as they explain the true intent of the legislature,” the CCI said, as per the report.
The CCI, in its filing, accused Apple of attempting to mislead the court, claiming that although it has the authority to base penalties on global turnover, it only requested “India-specific financial details” from Apple.
Apple denied the allegation, clarifying that the turnover details sought by the CCI, in accordance with the new law, could expose it to a much higher penalty, the report noted, citing the court filing.
The Delhi High Court is set to hear the case on 27 January.
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