US lobby asks India to rethink proposed EU-style competition law

NEW DELHI: A US lobby group representing tech giants Google, Amazon and Apple has written a letter to the Indian government urging the country to rethink its proposed EU-style competition law.

In a letter to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, the group said regulations prohibiting the use of data and preferential treatment of partners could increase user costs.

“Targeted companies are likely to reduce investments in India, pass on price increases for digital services, and limit the scope of services,” said the letter from the US-India Business Council (USIBC), part of the US Chamber of Commerce.

In February 2024, India proposed imposing obligations under a new antitrust law that proposes banning companies from using non-public data of their users and promoting their own services over competitors, as well as lifting restrictions on downloading third-party applications.

India’s Digital Competition Act builds on the EU’s landmark Digital Markets Act 2022. It will apply to large companies, including those with a global turnover of more than $30 billion and whose digital services have at least 10 million users locally.

India, with 1.4 billion people and a growing wealthy class, is a lucrative market for large technology companies.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) had imposed a fine of $161 million on Google in 2022, ordering it to stop restricting users from deleting pre-installed apps and allow downloads without using the app store.

Google denies abuse and says such restrictions increase user security.