India says Apple has abused its dominant market share in iOS apps
India's competition authority backtracks on allegations against Apple and the App store due to a legal formality.
In 2021The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has launched an investigation into a company belonging to a group called “Together We Fight Society,” regarding App Store fees and regulations. In July 2024the CCI announced that it had concluded that Apple has “significant influence” over digital products and services.
The CCI said this in a 142-page report which cited how “app developers have no choice but to abide by Apple’s unfair terms.” Crucially, the full report has not been made public, but it is the reason Apple was able to persuade the CCI to withdraw its accusation.
Because according to BloombergApple has claimed that the report contains what it describes as privileged and sensitive information. That is clearly enough to mean that the report will not be released more widely than other regulators, but it is reportedly more important than the CCI having to redact some parts.
Apple's complaint about privileged information came during the post-investigation phase, where the accused can respond before India decides whether to impose fines. India will not now proceed to the fines phase, and it is reportedly possible that the investigation may even have to be restarted.
Neither the CCI nor Apple commented. However, during the investigation, Apple also objected, saying its market share in India is “insignificant”, no more than 5%.