Tech giants accuse Indian agencies of ignorance in Xiaomi spat

While the lobby group's letter to ICEA didn't name the Xiaomi case specifically, it warned that accusing companies of illegal royalty payments could have a 'chilling effect' on business in the country

A lobby group including Apple Inc. and other technology giants operating in India called out the country’s authorities for misunderstanding how patent fees work, following local officials’ dispute with Xiaomi Corp.

In a letter to ministries, the India Cellular and Electronics Association urged the federal government to intervene and accused the country’s enforcement agencies of a “lack of understanding” of royalty payments in the technology industry.

India’s anti-money-laundering agency is accusing Xiaomi of moving money out of the country by falsely claiming it was for patent-fee payments. The agency seized more than $700 million from a local unit of the