Key Takeaways
- The Delhi High Court has given the government and CCI one week to justify penalties based on global turnover.
- Apple is challenging the law, fearing potential fines up to $38 billion for alleged App Store abuses in India.
- The CCI accuses Apple of delaying its investigation, while Apple calls the penalty framework “arbitrary.”
- The case is a major test for India’s regulatory approach to Big Tech.
The Delhi High Court has directed the Indian government and the Competition Commission of India (CCI) to explain, within a week, the legal basis for imposing antitrust penalties based on a company’s global turnover. The order came during a hearing on Apple’s petition challenging recent amendments to the Competition Act.
A bench led by Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya issued notices but declined to immediately rule on the CCI’s demand for Apple’s financial data or Apple’s request for protection from coercive action. The next hearing is scheduled for 16 December.
The Core Legal Challenge
Apple is contesting the 2023 amendment to the Competition Act and the 2024 Monetary Penalty Guidelines. These allow the CCI to levy fines of up to 10% of a company’s average global turnover from the past three years.
The tech giant argues this is “arbitrary and grossly disproportionate” for alleged misconduct confined to the Indian market, which represents a tiny fraction of its global business. Apple’s plea warns that, if found guilty in the ongoing App Store probe, it could face a staggering penalty of nearly $38 billion.
Apple also contends the provision contradicts a 2017 Supreme Court ruling () that penalties should be based on “relevant turnover,” not total global sales.
CCI’s Investigation and Counter-Argument
The CCI is investigating Apple over complaints filed between 2021-2022 by Indian startups, NGOs, and Match Group (owner of Tinder). They allege Apple abused its dominant position by forcing developers to use its in-app payment system and pay commissions up to 30%.
In court, CCI’s senior advocate Balbir Singh argued Apple was trying to delay the process. “We have only asked for India turnover, not global turnover—why are they withholding it?” he asked. Singh stated the investigation was complete and Apple must now respond to the findings.
The regulator argued that fears of massive global-turnover fines are overblown. The law requires the CCI to first define the relevant market before calculating penalties, and global turnover is used only as a last resort when a company fails to provide sufficient local data.
Global Context of Antitrust Fines
India’s penalty framework is closer to the European Union’s than that of the United States. The EU can impose fines up to 10% of global turnover but typically bases calculations on revenue linked to the specific market where the violation occurred.
For instance, the EU’s €4.34-billion fine against Google in 2018 used revenue from Android search services in Europe. Its 2024 €1.84-billion fine on Apple amounted to just 0.5% of Apple’s global sales.
Apple’s business in India, while growing fast, is still significantly smaller than in Europe. The company earned about $8 billion in India in FY24, compared to $101.33 billion in Europe.
What’s at Stake
This case is poised to become a landmark test for how India’s updated competition law is applied to multinational technology giants. The outcome will shape the CCI’s future enforcement actions and set a precedent for regulating Big Tech in one of the world’s most critical digital markets.
Apple’s senior advocate, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, told the court the company could not meet the CCI’s 8 December deadline for financial data as it was not publicly disclosed in India and needed to be collated. Queries sent to Apple India and the CCI remained unanswered.
