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The fair trading regulator has ordered Google to cease and desist from unfair business practices
On October 20, the Competition Commission fined Google ₹1,337.76 crore for abusing its dominant position in multiple markets in the Android mobile device ecosystem.
In addition, the fair trade regulator has ordered the internet major to cease and desist from unfair business practices.
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) said in a statement that it has also directed Google to amend its conduct within a specified period.
In April 2019, the regulator ordered a detailed investigation into the matter following complaints from Android smartphone consumers in the country. Android is an open source mobile operating system installed by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) of smartphones and tablets.
The allegations of unfair business practices related to two agreements — the Mobile Application Distribution Agreement (MADA) and the Anti Fragmentation Agreement (AFA) — that Android OS OEMs entered into with Google.
In a report, the regulator said it has imposed a fine of ₹1,337.76 crore on Google for abusing its dominant position in multiple markets in the Android mobile device ecosystem, besides issuing a cease and desist order.
According to the release, the CCI said that the mandatory pre-installation of the entire Google Mobile Suite (GMS) under MADA without the option to uninstall the same and their prominent placement amounts to imposing unfair conditions on the device manufacturers and is therefore in violation. competition law.
“It was also found that these obligations are in the nature of additional obligations imposed by Google on OEMs, and are therefore contrary to Section 4(2)(a) d) of the law,” he added.
Abuse of a dominant position refers to § 4 of the Act on Economic Competition.
Google has maintained its dominant position in the online search market, which has the effect of denying market access to competing search applications. It also used its dominant position in the Android OS app market to protect its position in general online search, which violates competition law.
CCI further noted that the Internet major used its dominant position in the Android app store market to enter and protect its position in the non-OS web browser market through Google Chrome.
“Google used its dominant position in the Android application market to enter and protect its position in the online video hosting platform (OVHP) market through YouTube, thereby violating the provisions of Section 4(2)(e) of the Act. ” the release said.
