India Plans New Law to Keep Big Tech in Check

India is weighing a standalone Digital Competition Bill to regulate large technology platforms through ex-ante rules—a proactive shift aimed at curbing anti-competitive behavior before it harms the market. This marks a strategic pivot from case-by-case enforcement under the Competition Act of 2002 to a sector-specific framework targeting dominant digital players.

Status & Intent

• Paused for Refinement: As of September 2025, the bill is undergoing a fresh market study to recalibrate thresholds and obligations.
• Standalone Law Favored: The government prefers a new law over amending existing competition statutes.
• Focus on SSDEs: Targets Systemically Significant Digital Enterprises across app stores, ad tech, search, social media, e-commerce, and OS platforms.

Key Features Under Review

• Designation Criteria: Moving beyond blunt metrics (e.g., turnover, user base) to qualitative factors like control over bottlenecks, network effects, and incentive structures.
• Conduct Rules: Includes bans on self-preferencing, anti-steering, bundling, default settings, and mandates for data access and portability.
• Startup Safeguards: Thresholds are being revised to ensure only dominant platforms are regulated, avoiding unintended burdens on emerging players.

Stakeholder Dynamics

• Big Tech Pushback: Industry groups call the bill “prescriptive” and “regressive.”
• Startup Support: Indian startups broadly support the bill but advocate for higher thresholds to avoid overreach.

Comparative Table: India vs. Global Digital Competition Regimes

Feature / Jurisdiction	🇮🇳 India – Digital Competition Bill (Draft)	🇪🇺 EU – Digital Markets Act (DMA)	🇰🇷 South Korea – Online Platform Fairness Act	🇯🇵 Japan – Digital Market Competition Enhancement Act
Legal Structure	Standalone ex-ante law (under review)	Standalone ex-ante regulation	Amendment to existing Fair Trade Act	Amendment to Anti-Monopoly Act
Regulator	Competition Commission of India (CCI)	European Commission	Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC)	Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC)
Platform Scope	Systemically Significant Digital Enterprises (SSDEs)	Gatekeepers (based on size & impact)	Large platforms with bargaining power	Digital platform operators with significant market power
Designation Criteria	Qualitative + Quantitative (under revision)	Quantitative thresholds (turnover, users)	Bargaining power, transaction volume	Market dominance, data control
Key Obligations	No self-preferencing, anti-steering, bundling, data portability	Similar obligations + interoperability	Fair contract terms, transparency	Transparency, fair data use, algorithm accountability
Enforcement Style	Ex-ante + case-by-case flexibility	Strict ex-ante with fixed obligations	Ex-ante + ex-post hybrid	Ex-post with some ex-ante elements
Penalty Mechanism	Fines + behavioral remedies	Fines up to 10% of global turnover	Fines + corrective orders	Fines + improvement orders
Startup Safeguards	Thresholds under review to protect startups	Exemptions for smaller players	Focus on platform–SME fairness	Tailored obligations for smaller platforms
Status (as of Sep 2025)	Paused for refinement, new market study	Fully in force since 2023	Passed, enforcement ongoing	Enforced, with annual reviews

Sources: Government briefings, regulatory filings, legal commentary.

How Competition Law Affect Startups In India

"Competition is always a good thing. It forces us to do our best. A monopoly renders people complacent and satisfied with mediocrity."- Nancy Pearcey

According to various business experts, competition in business helps one to push their boundaries and work harder for the things that they initially found out of their reach. Recently, the United Kingdom's Competition and Market Authority (CMA), issued a guide for startups.

So, do you think the competition law affects startups?

According to a report by CMA, the startup industry reflects very low standards of awareness about the conducts that are prohibited under the competition law. Many UK startups seem to believe that sharing information with competitors is a totally legal act, as against how it usually is.

Competition Commission of India (CCI), a body similar to CMA, believes that the Indian competition law aims to promote fair competition and consumer welfare. It achieves the same by making sure that ethical business practices are being employed by the companies dispensing the services or producing the products or doing both.

The Competition Act, 2002 strives to fulfil its aim by (i) prohibiting anti-competitive horizontal and vertical agreements, including cartels; (ii) prohibiting abuse of a dominant position; and (iii) regulating mergers and acquisitions, referred to as "combinations” under the Act.

It is important to note that even startups have to duly comply by rules listed under the Competition Act. This is mainly because legal scrutiny under the act has significant chances of reputational risks. Further, the company found breaching the Competition Act can be charged with significant penalties by the CCI.

What all a startup should know?

In order to duly comply with the Competition Act, the Startups should have a general idea of all the rights at their disposal and all the possible antitrust risks that may arise from the Act.

Here are a few key situations that a startup enterprise might consider for ensuring complete compliance with the Competition Act.

Usage of unfair, discriminatory and unilateral practices at the hands of a dominant entity is tagged as an anti-competitive practice. Please note, that you being a startup, doesn't save you from being termed as a dominant entity for a significant time period. Let us taken an example of WhatsApp, which is one of the most popular messaging mobile app available nowadays. WhatsApp had managed to capture a user base of 56 percent Indian mobile internet users within a short span of 3-4 years and climb the top of the market ladder. This gives us enough pretext that startups driven by technology need to take care of all the legalities and checks, right from the very beginning of their startup journey.

As a new kid on the block, you might have to face predatory pricing from dominant competitors. If you're stuck in a similar situation, the best thing for you to do is to discuss your issue and possible legal actions with your competition law counsel.

Similarly, you will also have to keep a watch-out for any possible cartelisation attempt by the well-established players in the market to lower the prices, in an effort to run you dry.

According to Section 3(4) of the Competition Act, the act of an eCommerce startup being directed by a manufacturer not to sell its products below a particular dictated price is referred to as "resale price maintenance” and is considered as a totally anti-competitive act.

Any startup having technology and innovation at heart, might have to register patents, trademarks and copyrights on a time-to-time basis in India. According to the Competition Act, an enterprise can impose reasonable conditions in an agreement in its efforts to protect its intellectual property rights. Mostly, these agreements do not fall under the radar of anti-competitive agreements, unless the intellectual property rights are registered in India.

An agreement typically includes any arrangement, understanding or concerted action. Further, an anti-competitive agreement doesn't necessarily need to be reduced to writing or be legally enforced or formalised.