Apple calls on India’s anti-competitive watchdog to dismiss its application case Business and Economic News

Apple Inc. has asked India’s anti-competitive watchdog to dismiss a case alleging abuse of market power in the app market, saying Google is too small a player in the South Asian-dominated country, according to a dossier seen by Reuters news agency.

The presentation was made after the Indian Competition Commission (ICC) began examining allegations that Apple was harming competition, forcing app developers to use its proprietary system, which could charge a 30 per cent commission on in-app purchases.

Apple denied the allegations when it filed a lawsuit against the CCI and stressed that India’s market share is 0-5 percent “significant,” and Google promises 90-100 percent because its Android operating system affects most other mobile phones.

“Apple is not dominant in the Indian market … Without dominance, there can be no abuse,” Apple said in its Nov. 16 presentation, signed by its Chief Compliance Officer, Kyle Andeer.

“It has already been established that Google is the main player in India,” he added.

Apple and CCI did not respond to the request for comment. A Google spokesman for Alphabet Inc. declined to comment on Apple’s allegations in the filing.

The plaintiff, an unknown non-profit group called the Together We Fight Society, said that with iOS, Apple dominates the market for unlicensed mobile operating systems.

Apple responded to this in its presentation by saying that the entire smartphone market – which includes licensed systems like Android – is a market to consider.

Apple described the Indian complaint as a “proxy file” in its CCI submission, saying the complainant was “likely to act with Apple in ongoing global trade and contract disputes and / or with other regulatory parties.”

The U.S. technology company did not provide any evidence to support its claim. The non-profit organization told Reuters that Apple’s statement was made “to the detriment of the CCI’s mind” “without any evidence.”

In the coming weeks, the CCI will look into Apple’s response to the allegations and may request a further investigation or dismiss the case altogether if it does not find any merits. Details of CCI research are not publicly available.

CCI is conducting a study on Google’s in-app payment system as part of a more comprehensive study of the company, following concerns from Indian startups last year.

Apple’s iOS fed about 2 percent of India’s 520 million mobile phones by the end of 2020, and the rest used Android, according to Counterpoint Research, though it adds that Apple’s country’s phone base has doubled in the past five years.

Global issue

Apple is making similar allegations in other parts of the world. In the United States, Epic Games, the founder of “Fornite,” is embroiled in a legal battle over the issue, and South Korea has been the first country to ban developers from using major payment system operators to use payment systems this year.

In the European Union, last year regulators launched an investigation into Apple’s paid digital content distribution and other restrictions on its application.

Companies like Apple and Google claim that their fees cover the security and marketing benefits that their app stores offer.

In its CCI presentation, Apple argued that the in-app fees it charges are “unfair or excessive” and have been reduced over time, adding that it charges lower rates to small developers.

“Only a small number of large developers, many of whom are multi-billion dollar conglomerates, pay the top 30 percent rate,” Apple said.

“Competitors have been charged similar or higher commissions to Apple. In particular, Google has charged a 30 percent commission in its app store, ”he said.