Indian startups up the ante against Google; knock on CCI's door

As many as 15 startup founders approached the Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Saturday to bring to the regulator's notice Google's anti-competitive policies in India.

The founders held a virtual meeting with the CCI to complain against the tech giant following recent imposition of Google's Play Store billing system on Indian developers.

Among those who reportedly attended the meeting comprised founders of nCore Games, Map My India, and Bharat Matrimony.

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The startup founders also complained to the anti-trust watchdog about the 30 per cent commission the company (Google) charges for selling digital goods and services through its platform, sources told the Mint.

The founders told the CCI that Google has an unfair advantage over its rivals as phones with its Android Operating System (OS) are preloaded with the Play Store app distribution platform.

Because of this dominance, Google forces Indian developers "to build and change apps based on its OS and app store," the sources alleged, adding that the company's "arbitrary policies" demonstrate this behaviour.

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"With more than 95% of India's digital population accessing the Internet through Google, this strategy of having an OS and Play Store, together gives Google an advantage over other app stores and operating systems. Hence, we have requested them to look into this matter," one of the founders present at the meeting with CCI told the publication.

The startup founders are now planning to send a written communication to both the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and CCI this week after compiling views from the industry.

If the startups file a lawsuit against Google with the CCI, it will be the fifth such case Google is going to face in India.