Google’s Rs. 1,337.8 Billion Fine Upheld by NCLAT, With Some CCI Order Modifications

In a significant setback for Google, the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on Wednesday sustained, with some amendments, the fairtrade certified regulator CCI’s rulings inflicting a fine of Rs. 1,337.76 crores on the Internet giant Google in the case involving Android smartphones.

Google has been ordered to follow the direction and deposit the money within 30 days by a two-member NCLAT bench. We maintained this punishment. The court’s previous judgment from January 4 said that the appellant (Google) was given 30 days to deposit the fine after adjusting 10% of the sum already deposited.

Additionally, it gave Google 30 days to put the measures that had been approved by NCLAT and the Competition Commission of India into effect. October 20, 2022, the CCI order was modified by the NCLAT panel, which also included Member Alok Shrivastava and Chairperson Justice Ashok Bhushan.

The CCI order has been modified, and several of the issues concerning the capacity to uninstall Google Suite software have been struck down. Also, it denied Google’s claim that the CCI’s conduct in the investigation violated the principles of natural justice.

PTI, a news organization, emailed Google for remarks but received no reply.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) fined Google Rs. 1,337.76 crore on October 20 of the previous year for engaging in anti-competitive behaviour with regard to mobile phones running Android. The internet giant had also been told to stop engaging in several unfair commercial practices by the regulator.

This decision was contested before the NCLAT, which has appellate jurisdiction over the CCI’s orders. Google claimed in its appeal that the CCI’s investigation into it was “tainted,” claiming that the two whistleblowers on whose complaints the fairtrade certified regulator based the probe were employed by the very same office that has been looking into the tech giant.