Google Challenges NCLAT Verdict in Supreme Court Over Android Ecosystem Abuse

Google has officially appealed to the Supreme Court of India against the March 2025 ruling by the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT), which had partially upheld the Competition Commission of India’s (CCI) findings that the tech giant abused its dominance in the Android ecosystem, reported Bar & Bench. 

Key Allegations Upheld by NCLAT

Unfair Play Store policies: Google was found to have imposed mandatory use of Google Play Billing System (GPBS) on app developers, while exempting its own apps like YouTube.

Promotion of Google Pay: The tribunal concluded that Google leveraged its dominance in licensable smartphone OS and app store markets to promote Google Pay, violating Section 4(2)(e) of the Competition Act.

Unfair conditions on developers: Mandatory use of GPBS was deemed discriminatory under Section 4(2)(a)(i).

Penalty Recalibration

• Original CCI fine: ₹936.44 crore
• Revised by NCLAT: ₹216.69 crore, based only on Play Store-specific revenues

Procedural Twist

• On May 1, NCLAT issued a clarification reinstating two key directives:
• Google must disclose data policies.
• Google must not leverage billing data for competitive advantage.

What’s Next?

Google filed its appeal on July 21, 2025.

The Supreme Court is expected to hear the case soon, potentially reshaping how digital platforms are regulated in India.

Microsoft Charged with Antitrust Violation by the EU for 'Microsoft Teams'

The European Union (EU) has accused Microsoft of violating antitrust rules by bundling its Teams messaging and videoconferencing app with core office productivity applications like Office 365 and Microsoft 365. The EU suspects that Microsoft may have granted Teams an "undue advantage" by not giving customers a choice when purchasing the software. Additionally, limits on rival messaging apps working with Microsoft software may have widened this advantage.

The EU's executive vice-president for competition policy, Margrethe Vestager, expressed concern about preserving competition in remote communication and collaboration tools. Microsoft now has a chance to respond before the final decision is made. This marks the first antitrust charge against Microsoft in the EU in 15 years.

"The European Commission has informed Microsoft of its preliminary view that Microsoft has breached EU antitrust rules by tying its communication and collaboration product Teams to its popular productivity applications included in its suites for businesses Office 365 and Microsoft 365," the European Commission — the EU's executive arm — said in a Statement of Objections, which is sent to inform companies of concerns raised against them.

Last year the tech giant unbundled Teams from Microsoft 365 in an effort to quash antitrust concerns by the EU, but the European Commission said the changes were "insufficient to address its concerns."

Microsoft said Tuesday it would work to find solutions to address the commission's additional concerns.

This recent antitrust charge against Microsoft by the European Union is related to previous cases. It's the first such charge in 15 years, and it focuses on Microsoft bundling its Teams app with core office productivity software, potentially giving it an "undue advantage" in the market. The EU aims to ensure fair competition in remote communication and collaboration tools .

In 2001, the U.S. government accused Microsoft of illegally monopolizing the web browser market for Windows. The case revolved around Microsoft's bundling of Internet Explorer with Windows, restricting users' ability to uninstall it and use other browsers like Netscape and Java. The initial trial found Microsoft's actions unlawful under the Sherman Antitrust Act, but the Court of Appeals partially overturned that judgment. Eventually, Microsoft reached a settlement that led to modifications in its business practices. In the 1990s, U.S. federal regulators sued Microsoft, alleging monopolistic behavior in the personal computer market.

More recently, the U.S. government brought antitrust cases against Microsoft to block its acquisition of game developer Activision and against Google to divest some of its advertising businesses³.

These cases reflect the ongoing scrutiny of Microsoft's practices and their impact on competition in the tech industry.

Google Facing onslaught of Antitrust Cases in US - Report

Federal and state regulators in the U.S. are preparing to file antitrust lawsuits alleging Google has abused its dominance of online search and advertising to stifle competition and and boost its profits, according to a report published Friday.

The Wall Street Journal cited unidentified people familiar with the probes in a story about the upcoming offensive by the U.S. Justice Department and the attorneys general from several states.

The Justice Department may file its case as early as this summer while Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton may take action in the fall, along with his peers in other states, according to the Journal.

U.S. Attorney General William Barr has previously said he hoped to decide whether to pursue an antitrust case against Google by the summer. Texas and other states announced they were looking into Google's business practices last September.

Google acknowledged it has ongoing discussions with the Justice Department and Paxton without elaborating on the nature of the talks.

"Our focus is firmly on providing services that help consumers, support thousands of businesses, and enable increased choice and competition," the company said in a statement.

This isn't the first time Google has been thrust under the microscope of antitrust in the US. The Federal Trade Commission closed an extensive investigation into Google's alleged abuses in 2013 without taking any action because it concluded the Mountain View, California, company wasn't hurting consumers.

Since then, Google has grown even more powerful under the umbrella of the corporate parent, Alphabet, that it spawned in five years ago. When the FTC closed its case, Google was generating annual revenue of $50 billion. Last year, earned Alphabet raked in $162 billion in revenue.

Most of the money comes from a digital ad market that Google dominates along with social networking rival Facebook — another potential target of antitrust regulators. There has been no word, though, whether Facebook might be sued.

Google is the bigger of the two online ad giants, thanks mostly to a search engine that has become synonymous with looking things up. The company also owns the leading web browser in Chrome, the world's largest mobile operating system in Android, the top video site in YouTube and the most popular digital mapping system.

Google has consistently maintained its services face ample competition and have unleashed innovations that help people manage their lives. Most of the services are offered for free in exchange for personal information that helps Google sell its ads.

Antitrust regulators in Europe have attempted to crack down on Google by imposing multi-billion dollar fines and ordering changes to its practices.

But the company's critics say those penalties haven't been severe enough and contend more extreme measures will be required to for Google to change its ways. Those might include a government attempt to force Google to spin off its various services into separate businesses, an effort the company would be likely to fiercely oppose. (AP)

India's Competition Watchdog CCI Orders Google Antitrust Investigation for Android abuse concerns

India has reportedly joined European Union (EU) in investigating Google over alleged Android antitrust concerns. Indian competition watchdog Competition Commission of India (CCI) has ordered an investigation into Alphabet Inc's unit Google for allegedly abusing the dominant position of its popular Android mobile operating system to block rivals, reported Reuters citing two sources aware of the matter.

Interestingly, it is still unknown that who filed complaint but it involves more than just one person. Moreover the decision of CCI to go for full investigation has not been previously reported nor it was brought to public knowledge.

According to Reuters, in February last year CCI started looking into the complaint, which is similar to one Google faced in Europe that resulted in a 4.34 billion euro ($5 billion) fine on the company. In that very month, India's CCI too imposed a fine of Rs 136 crore (~$21.1 million) on internet giant Google which was for unfair business practices in the Indian market for online search.

The Reuters report further said that, in mid-April, the CCI decided there was merit in the Android dominance accusations made in the complaint and ordered its investigation unit to launch a full probe.

The undergoing full investigation would be completed in about a year and Google executives would likely be summoned to appear before the CCI in coming months, said the report.

In a statement to Reuters, a Google spokesman said, "Android has enabled millions of Indians to connect to the internet by making mobile devices more affordable. Google looked forward to working with the CCI to demonstrate how Android has led to more competition and innovation, not less."

In last decade, EU has launched three separate antitrust investigations into Google for violating the EU's competition laws due to its dominant position in the market. These cases have resulted in formal charges against Google related to Google Shopping, Google AdSense and the Android operating system.