India’s competition watchdog ordered an investigation into Apple Inc’s business practices in the country on Friday, claiming the iPhone maker had a case to answer over alleged antitrust laws violations.
The order from the Competition Commission of India (CCI) came after a non-profit group alleged that Apple was abusing its dominant position in the apps market by forcing developers to use its proprietary in-app purchase system.
The complainant, ‘Together We Fight Society,’ argued that Apple’s imposition of a 30% in-app fee for distribution of paid digital content and other restrictions hurts competition by raising costs for app developers and customers, while also acting as a barrier to market entry.
The CCI said Apple’s restrictions prima facie result in denial of market access for potential app developers and distributors.
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“The commission at this stage is convinced that a prima facie case is made out against Apple which merits investigation,” it said. Apple did not respond to requests for comment.
The company reportedly denied the allegations in a filing to the CCI last month and asked the regulator to throw out the case, stressing that its market share in India was “insignificant.”
The CCI however said in the order that Apple’s argument on its market share was “completely misdirected” as the allegations were about anti-competitive restrictions on app developers and not end-users.
The allegations are similar to a case Apple faces in the European Union, where regulators last year started an investigation into the US tech giant.
The CCI ordered its investigations unit to complete the investigation and submit a report within 60 days of the order. Typically such investigations go on for several months.
The watchdog is separately conducting an investigation into Google’s in-app payment system as part of a broader probe into the company after Indian startups last year voiced concern.
- Reuters with additional editing by Sean O’Meara
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