The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) declined to grant interim relief to Google that sought a stay on Competition Commission of India’s (CCI) penalty of Rs 936.44 crore on the tech giant for abusing its dominant position in Play Store policies. The NCLAT directed Google to deposit 10 per cent of the fine in four weeks.
A two-member bench comprising Justice Rakesh Kumar an Alok Srivastava issued notices to CCI and other respondents. The matter has been posted for hearing on April 17, 2023.
This comes after NCLAT declined another CCI order for a penalty of Rs 1,337.76 crore for anti-competitive practices in relation to Android mobile devices.
The tech giant was slapped fines amounting to Rs 2,200 crore in these two CCI rulings less than a week apart in October. Google has been asked to cease and desist unfair business practices and to address the anti-competitive issues within a defined timeline.
In the aftermath of the ruling, Google had said that it is ‘pausing’ the enforcement of the requirement for developers to use Play’s billing system for the purchase of digital goods and services while it reviews legal options.
Meanwhile, in the Rs 1,337.76 crore penalty case, the Supreme Court, on Wednesday, agreed to hear the tech giant’s plea against NCLAT’s refusal to stay the CCI fine. A bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice P S Narasimha will hear the plea on Monday.
Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who appeared for the tech giant, said that the CCI passed extraordinary directions. “There is no finding of abuse of dominance,” he argued.
Google is also facing a separate probe into its business conduct in the news content and smart TV market in India.
(With agency inputs)