SC asks NCLAT to decide by March 31 on Google’s appeal against CCI’s order of ₹1337 crore penalty for unfair practices

Google was fined over ₹2,200 crore in two CCI rulings less than a week apart in October 2022. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to interfere with an interim order of NCLAT directing the technology giant to deposit 10% of ₹1,337.76 crore penalty imposed on it by Competition Commission of India for alleged anti-competitive practices.

The top court sent Google’s plea back to the Tribunal and asked it to decide the case by March 31 and asked Google to approach NCLAT within three working days for a decision on the plea.

On October 20 last year, the Competition Commission imposed a penalty of ₹1,337.76 crore on Google for abusing its dominant position in multiple markets in the Android mobile device ecosystem. On January 4, 2023, a two member NCLAT Bench directed Google to deposit 10% of the fine before its registry in the next four weeks.

Google was fined over ₹2,200 crore in two CCI rulings less than a week apart in October, 2022, marking a setback for the tech titan in one of the most promising digital markets globally.

On October 25, 2022, CCI had slapped a penalty of ₹936.44 crore on Google for abusing its dominant position with respect to its Play Store policies.

The regulator had directed the company to cease and desist from unfair business practices as well as carry out various measures to address the anti-competitive issues within a defined timeline.

Google had subsequently said it is “pausing” enforcement of the requirement for developers to use Play’s billing system for the purchase of digital goods and services for transactions by users in India while it reviews legal options, in the aftermath of the recent ruling by the CCI.

“Following the CCI’s recent ruling, we are pausing enforcement of the requirement for developers to use Google Play’s billing system for the purchase of digital goods and services for transactions by users in India while we review our legal options and ensure we can continue to invest in Android and Play,” Google said in an update on help centre page on November 1.

The search engine giant has faced criticism globally for mandating software developers using its app store to only use its proprietary in-app payment system that charge a commission of up to 30% on purchases made within an app.

(With inputs from agencies)