In the previous five years, Apple's smartphone base in India has allegedly more than doubled.

HIGHLIGHTS

In its CCI reply, Apple referred to the lawsuit as a 'proxy filing.'

Similar claims have been levelled against the corporation in various parts of the world.

Apple's reaction to the charges will now be examined by the CCI.  

Why in news ?

According to a file obtained by Reuters, Apple has requested India's antitrust authority to dismiss a case alleging market power abuse in the applications industry, claiming it is too minor a participant in the South Asian country where Google is dominating.

The complaint was filed after the Competition Commission of India (CCI) began investigating claims that Apple is harming competition by pushing app developers to use its proprietary system, which may charge up to 30% commissions on in-app sales. In its petition to the CCI, Apple refuted the charges and stated that its market share in India is 'insignificant' at 0-5 percent, but Google controls 90-100 percent of the market since its Android operating system runs most other handsets.

'In India, Apple is not the market leader... There can be no abuse without power 'Apple said this in a November 16 report signed by Kyle Andeer, their Chief Compliance Officer. It went on to say, 'It has already been proven that Google is the dominating player in India.' A request for comment from Apple and the CCI was not returned. When contacted about Apple's claims in the petition, a spokeswoman for Alphabet's Google declined to comment. The case's claimant, a little-known non-profit organisation named 'Together We Fight Society,' claimed that Apple's iOS controls the market for non-licensed mobile operating systems.

In its lawsuit, Apple rebutted this, claiming that the whole smartphone industry - which includes licensable systems like Android - should be considered. In its CCI reply, Apple also called the Indian complaint a 'proxy file,' stating the complainant was 'possibly operating in collaboration with parties with whom Apple has ongoing commercial and contractual problems internationally and/or who have complained to other regulators.' In its proposal, the US tech corporation provided no proof to back up its assertion. Apple's comment, according to the non-profit, was 'designed to bias the mind' of the CCI 'without any iota of proof,' according to Reuters.

The CCI will assess Apple's response to the charges in the coming weeks and may request a more thorough inquiry or dismiss the matter entirely if it finds no validity in it. The findings of CCI investigations are not made public. Following concerns from Indian entrepreneurs last year, the CCI launched a separate inquiry into Google's in-app payment mechanism as part of a wider examination against the business.

According to Counterpoint Research, Apple's iOS powered roughly 2% of India's 520 million cellphones as of end-2020, with the rest using Android. However, Apple's smartphone base in the nation has more than quadrupled in the previous five years.

international issue

Similar complaints have been levelled against Apple in various regions of the world. It is involved in a legal struggle with Epic Games, the inventor of Fortnite, in the United States, and South Korea became the first jurisdiction to prohibit major app store owners from forcing developers to use their payment systems this year.

Apple's in-app payments for the distribution of premium digital content, as well as other restrictions, were investigated by European Union authorities last year.

Apple and Google claim that their fees cover the security and marketing benefits provided by their app marketplace

Apple said in its CCI filing that the in-app commissions it charges are 'neither unreasonable or exorbitant' and have reduced over time, and that it charges smaller developers lesser rates.

'Only a few major developers, many of which are multibillion-dollar companies, pay the headline rate of 30%,' Apple noted.