Report: Apple to face antitrust scrutiny in India soon

Apple has faced and continues to face antitrust scrutiny in several countries around the world. In the United States, the Department of Justice is investigating Apple for potential antitrust violations related to its App Store practices. In the EU, the European Commission has opened multiple investigations into Apple, including investigations into its App Store policies, Apple Pay, and music streaming services. In the United Kingdom, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is investigating Apple’s App Store, focusing on concerns about its impact on competition in cloud gaming and mobile browsers.

In India, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) is investigating Apple’s practice of forcing App Store developers to use its own in-app purchase system. Reuters reported today that the CCI found that Apple abused its dominant market position. Reuters obtained access to the CCI’s 142-page investigation report, which has not yet been made public. The report noted that Apple has “significant influence” over how third-party services are delivered to consumers on the iOS platform through the App Store.

The CCI report on Apple’s practices included the following information:

Apple’s App Store is an unavoidable commercial partner for app developers, and as a result, app developers have no choice but to comply with Apple’s unfair terms, including the mandatory use of Apple’s proprietary billing and payment system. From the perspective of app developers, the Apple iOS ecosystem is irreplaceable.

Unlike the US and European markets, Apple’s iOS market share in India is still in the single digits. Apple has argued that antitrust concerns are unfounded given its low single-digit smartphone market share in India. In India, Google controls around 90-95% of the Android smartphone market. The CCI has already fined Google for forcing developers to use Play Store billing, and Google has challenged the fine.

The CCI findings could lead to significant changes in Apple’s App Store practices in India. However, with Apple contesting the allegations and Google’s case still pending, the final outcome remains uncertain.

Source: Reuters