The Google vs Competition Commission of India (CCI) saga is taking another turn. As per media reports, the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLAT) will be hearing Google’s appeal against CCI’s penalty today. Through this hearing, it is expected that the tech giant may ask for a stay on the penalty order issued over unfair business practices in Android mobile devices.
According to a report in the Economic Times, when Google mentioned its appeal for an early hearing, OSLabs Technology Private Limited and MapmyIndia also intimated the NCLAT that they proposed to file impleadment applications. Further, these companies also reportedly requested for listing along with Google’s appeal as they allegedly suffered due to Google’s anti-competitive practices.
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However, the tech giant has also prepared itself to face the hearing. The report adds that in its appeal, Google has added testimonials from some start-ups, highlighting some concerns about CCI’s order against it.
It must be noted that CCI slapped Google with more than one penalty, however, the tech giant, as of now, has only appealed against one in NCLAT. For the unversed, the CCI order up for appeal amounts to nearly Rs. 1,337 crore. Through this, Google was put under the lens for allegedly abusing its dominant position in the Android Mobile device ecosystem.
Before this, when Google filed the appeal against the CCI penalty, it did so as the company reportedly also believed that this order has the potential to harm Indian users and its Android market. As per the report, CCI’s order had the risk of potentially raising the cost of mobile devices in this ecosystem.
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In addition to this, it has also been reported that at the time of filing this appeal against CCI, the tech giant was relatively optimistic that the NCLAT will also take into consideration that Android stakeholders may face more challenges if a stay is not brought on this matter.
