Google recently submitted a writ petition against the Competition Commission of India (CCI) to the Delhi High Court. The California-based company submitted the petition against the body after the report of the Director-General, the investigative arm of CCI, was leaked to the media. The company hoped to prevent any further unlawful disclosures of the confidential findings by moving the court.

"We are deeply concerned that the Director General's Report, which contains our confidential information in an ongoing case, was leaked to the media while in the CCI's custody. Protecting confidential information is fundamental to any governmental investigation, and we are pursuing our legal right to seek redress and prevent any further unlawful disclosures," a Google spokesperson said in the statement.

Last week, The Times of India had reported that the DG had found Google guilty of abusing its dominant position in the mobile device OS market through its initial probe. The report is not the same as the final verdict of the CCI body, which must be passed through a panel, but only an interim step in the probe.

Why has Google approached Delhi High Court?

Google alleges that the leak compromises the company’s ability to defend itself legally from the probe and that it had no opportunity to review or even read the report through CCI. The company added that it was “protesting against the breach of confidence, which impairs Google’s ability to defend itself and harms Google and its partners.”

Also read: Google calls CCI ‘habitual offender’, accuses it of leaking info ‘like a sieve’

The tech giant also moved the Delhi High court to seek interim relief against the leak so that further disclosures could not happen, even though the request was shot down. CCI’s representing legal counsel insisted that Google’s petition was “ just to frustrate proceedings” of the CCI.

What are the allegations against Google?

The company faced allegations of contravening Section 4 of the Competition Act, by abusing its dominant position in the market. In particular, the company faced scrutiny for its Mobile App Distribution Agreement (MADA) and Anti-Fragmentation Agreement (AFA)/Android Compatibility Commitment (ACC) that any Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEMs) running Android OS has to sign with the company.

The two agreements make sure that smartphones come with several Google apps pre-installed and thus giving them an unfair advantage and also prevents manufacturers from using alternate versions of the Android OS.

The company is under the lens of the CCI for similar practices in the smart TV market in a separate probe.

Also read: CCI orders probe against Google: Experts discuss the impact on tech and startup ecosystem

(Edited by : Shoma Bhattacharjee)

First Published:Sept 24, 2021 8:21 PM IST