CCI sends demand notice to Google for failing to pay ₹1,338 crore fine: Report

India’s antitrust watchdog Competition Commission of India (CCI) has sent a notice to Google for not paying the fine slapped on it in October for abusing its dominant position in the Android ecosystem, ET reported citing unnamed sources, on Thursday. 

The CCI had slapped Google with a fine of ₹1,338 crore on October 20 for forcing phone companies to pre-install its search apps, widgets, and the Chrome browser along with the Android OS that it licenses to them. Five days later, Google was slapped with another fine of ₹936.44 crore for its anti-competitive Play Store policies.

The CCI notice comes a week after Google’s announcement that it plans to challenge the CCI fine at the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT).

Under the competition laws of India, firms are required to pay the fine within 30 days of being notified. 

According to the ET report, mentioned earlier, the fine becomes payable only after the NCLAT gives a ruling on the judgment and the notice sent by the CCI is a routine process. 

Google on its part has argued that Android has created more choices for users and supports thousands of businesses in India. 

“The CCI's decision is a major setback for Indian consumers and businesses, opening serious security risks for Indians who trust Android's security features, and raising the cost of mobile devices for Indians. We will review the decision to evaluate the next steps,” Google said in a statement in response to the CCI fine in October. 

In addition to the fine, the CCI also ordered Google to amend its anti-competitive practices. The CCI said that licensing of Play Store should not be based on the condition that phone makers have to pre-install Google’s search services, Chrome browser, YouTube, Google Maps, Gmail, or other Google apps. It also said that Google should allow the distribution of third-party app stores through the Play Store.

The CCI is also investigating Google for promoting its payments service Google Pay and forcing smart TV makers to pre-install Google apps.