CCI rejects Apple's plea, warns antitrust case will proceed further: Report

The warning came after the Competition Commission of India said Apple delayed filing responses sought by investigators for over a year, despite multiple extensions, according to a Reuters report

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has warned tech giant Apple that it will likely move ahead with an antitrust case over the company’s attempts to slow proceedings, news agency Reuters reported on Thursday, citing a confidential order.

 

The final warning comes after the regulator said Apple had delayed filing responses and information sought by investigators for over a year, despite being granted multiple extensions.

 

According to Reuters, Apple has claimed that it could face a penalty of up to $38 billion if the CCI applies a global turnover-based method to calculate fines, following findings that it abused its dominant position in the app store market.

 

 

Apple has denied the allegations and challenged the penalty framework before the Delhi High Court.

 

While the Delhi High Court continues to hear Apple’s challenge, a confidential CCI order dated December 31 shows the company privately sought a pause on the entire antitrust case until the penalty dispute is resolved, the Reuters report said. The CCI rejected the request.

 

The watchdog said it had asked Apple in October 2024 to submit objections to the investigation’s findings and provide financial details typically used to determine penalties. It noted that Apple had since received repeated extensions.

Why did the CCI warn Apple over procedural delays?

“The Commission is of the considered view that repeated extensions, despite unambiguous directions, undermine procedural discipline and impede the timely conclusion of proceedings,” the CCI said in the order seen by Reuters.

 

“Such indulgence cannot be continued indefinitely,” it added, issuing a final warning that the case would proceed unilaterally if Apple fails to respond by next week.

 

Apple has not commented on the reports and has not issued a public statement so far.

What is Apple’s response and when is the next hearing?

Reuters cited a source familiar with the matter as saying that Apple views the December order as an attempt to pre-empt the ongoing court proceedings. The source said the company is unlikely to respond before judges hear the matter again on January 27.

 

Apple’s case forms part of a broader antitrust fight that began in 2022, when Indian start-ups and Match Group, which owns Tinder, raised complaints against the company.

 

In 2024, investigators concluded that Apple had engaged in “abusive conduct” in the iOS app market.