CCI order puts Android users' privacy at risk: Google to Supreme Court

Google India has told the Supreme Court in an appeal that the Competition Commission of India’s (CII’s) order against it undermines user safety and privacy for Indian Android users.

The tech giant -- in its 739-page appeal challenging the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal’s (NCLAT’s) refusal to grant an interim stay -- said “the Tribunal’s rejection of interim relief was unlawful, incorrect, and demonstrates non-application of mind”.

A copy of the appeal with Business Standard showed that Google finds the CCI’s “remedial directions” operate entirely on speculation and not based on any finding of abuse of dominance, and are internally inconsistent.

“It risks severe harm to Indian consumers and businesses, and opens new back-doors to foreign actors looking to compromise the security of Indian Android device users,” Google’s petition said.

It also said the Commission’s other directions hurt public interest by increasing device prices for Indian users, harming app developers and thwarting competition.

The tech giant said the NCLAT failed to appreciate the consequences of denying interim relief to Google which would mean that the company would have to implement changes to the status quo of 14-15 years and its entire business model by January 19, 2023.

The NCLAT, Google argued, erroneously rejected interim relief as it would cause the company irreversible and irreparable harm.

Google also said that the order directing it to deposit 10 per cent of the penalty as a precondition for the admission of its plea was unlawful.

It said the direction of the CCI asking it to “not restrict the ability of app developers” to distribute their apps outside of app stores -- a process known as “sideloading” -- threatens Google’s ability to show appropriate warnings to users about the risks associated with such apps.

Arguing that this would threaten user safety, Google explained: “When apps are downloaded directly from the internet, outside of an app store, Android shows a warning, asking the user if he/ she is sure they want to download this app.”

It has further argued that India has tremendously low-cost entry-level Android devices due to royalty-free, non-exclusive licensing of the Android OS and Google’s proprietary apps.

The company said that the CCI’s direction to allow OEMs to cherry-pick which Google apps to preload, preventing Google from securing pre-installation of its revenue-generating apps, would consequently force it to charge a licence fee from OEMs. “With mobile handsets getting costlier, users, in particular low-income rural consumers, are likely to suffer the most, including the risk of being excluded from government benefits,” it argued.

In October last year, the antitrust watchdog imposed a penalty of Rs 1,337.76 crore on Google for allegedly abusing its dominant position in multiple markets in the Android Mobile device ecosystem and violating Section 4 of the competition Act.

The commission also issued cease and desist order against Google for unfair business practices, and directed it to modify its conduct within a defined timeline.