India’s anti-trust watchdog has fined Google more than $160 million because it took advantage of its dominant position in the local smartphone market. Counterpoint, a research company, says that 95 percent of all smartphones in India use the Android mobile operating system, which a company in California makes. Android is by far the most popular mobile operating system in India.
But the Competition Commission of India (CCI) said that Google had set up the platform in a way that unfairly hurt competitors to its popular apps, like YouTube and the Chrome web browser.
A statement from the CCI late Thursday said that Android phones came with a set of Google apps, including the company’s search engine. This gave Google’s search services a “significant competitive edge over its competitors,” the statement said.
“Markets should be able to compete on their own merits, and (Google) has to make sure that its actions don’t get in the way of this,” it said. The commission fined the company 162 million dollars and told it that it couldn’t force Android users to pre-install its apps.
It also told Google not to make any deals with smartphone makers that would force them only to sell Android-based phones or use its software exclusively. India has the second most people who use smartphones worldwide, after China.
Counterpoint says its smartphone market grew by 27 percent year over year in 2021, with more than 169 million units sold yearly. More than 60% of the phones sold in the country are made by top Chinese companies like Xiaomi and Oppo.
Apple is still a tiny player in the market for cheap products, but it has made some gains in recent years. Last month, the company announced plans to make its best-selling iPhone 14 in China.
