COMPETITION LAW
Supreme Court Remands Flipkart Appeal Against NCLAT Order Prima Facie Finding It Preferred Certain Sellers
The Supreme Court of India on Tuesday sent back to the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal a case alleging abuse of dominance by Flipkart in favouring select sellers on its marketplace. The appeal filed by Flipkart challenges an NCLAT order dated March 4, 2020, which had set aside the closure of the case by the Competition Commission of India and held that the material on record disclosed a prima facie case of abuse of dominance warranting investigation. The NCLAT order was passed on an...
'What Is The User's Choice?' Supreme Court Questions WhatsApp's Privacy Policy In Appeal Against CCI Penalty
The Supreme Court of India on Tuesday warned Meta and WhatsApp that it would not allow the sharing of even “a single word” of user data with other Meta group companies, saying such practices cannot override citizens' right to privacy. “We will not allow you to share a single word of your data. How can you play with the right of privacy of the people like this” the court said, describing the policy as “a decent way of committing theft of private information.”The court was hearing appeals by Meta...
CCI Approves Tata Steel's Acquisition Of 50.01% Stake In Thriveni Pellets
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved Tata Steel Limited's acquisition of 50.01% equity share capital in Thriveni Pellets Private Limited, holding that the transaction does not raise any appreciable adverse effect on competition in India, despite a limited horizontal overlap in the iron ore pellet market. The clearance allows Tata Steel to acquire a majority stake in Thriveni Pellets from Thriveni Earthmovers Private Limited. The transaction was notified under the...
CCI Approves Elliott-Managed Funds' Proposed Stake Purchase In Toyota Industries
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved a proposal involving the acquisition of equity shares and voting rights in Toyota Industries Corporation by funds managed by US-based Elliott Investment Management. Under the approval, Elliott Associates L.P., Elliott International L.P. and The Liverpool Limited Partnership will acquire shares of Toyota Industries through on-market purchases on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and the Nagoya Stock Exchange. As the transaction involves the...
Supreme Court Refuses To Interfere With Kerala High Court Order Allowing CCI Probe Against Jiostar
The Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to interfere with a Kerala High Court ruling that permitted the Competition Commission of India (CCI) to investigate allegations that Jiostar India Private Limited abused its dominant position through discriminatory pricing in the Kerala cable television broadcasting market, even though the sector is regulated by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). A bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Sandeep Mehta dismissed a special leave petition filed by...
NCLAT Sets Aside CCI Order Clearing Chettinad Coal Terminal Of Abuse Of Dominance
The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) at New Delhi on Thursday set aside a 2021 order of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) that had cleared Chettinad International Coal Terminal Private Limited of abusing its dominant position, holding that the regulator went wrong in defining the relevant geographic market. A bench of Judicial Member Justice Mohammad Faiz Alam Khan and Technical Member Naresh Salecha said the CCI expanded the market without properly accounting for how...
CCI Approves Combination Involving Bhushan Power, JSW entities And JFE Steel
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) on January 20 approved a proposed combination involving Bhushan Power and Steel Ltd, JSW Sambalpur Steel Ltd, JFE Steel Corporation and JSW Kalinga Steel Ltd. The approval relates to a multi-step transaction involving the transfer of Bhushan Power and Steel's steel business undertaking, and not the company itself, as well as the acquisition of a stake by a foreign partner. As part of the approved transaction, Bhushan Power and Steel's steel business...
Supreme Court Dismisses Byju Raveendran's Appeal Against NCLAT Order Mandating CoC Nod For BCCI's Plea To Withdraw CIRP
The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed an appeal filed by Byju Raveendran, suspended director and promoter of Think and Learn Private Ltd (which ran the Ed-Tech firm Byju's), challenging an order of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal which held that the approval of the Committee of Creditors is necessary for the application filed by the BCCI to withdraw the insolvency proceedings against Byju's.A bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice KV Vishwanathan dismissed the appeal....
Competition Commission Finds Basketball Federation Of India Prima Facie Liable For Abuse Of Dominance And Anti-Competitive Arrangements, Directs Investigation
Competition Commission of India (“Commission”) bench, comprising Ms. Ravneet Kaur (Chairperson), Ms. Sweta Kakkad (Member) and Mr. Deepak Anurag (Member) has passed a prima facie order directing an investigation against the Basketball Federation of India (“BFI”) for abuse of its dominant position and engaging in anti-competitive practices. Background Facts Elite Pro Basketball Private Limited (Informant) planned to launch a national 5x5 professional basketball league and signed around...
CCI Has No Power to Investigate Disputes Concerning Abuse Of Patents: NCLAT
The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on Thursday reaffirmed that the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has no authority to investigate disputes involving the exercise of patent rights, holding that such matters fall exclusively under the Patents Act, 1970.The tribunal said that when a product is protected by a patent, issues related to its pricing or licensing must be addressed under patent law and not under competition law. A coram of Judicial Member Justice Yogesh Khanna...
CCI Dismisses Abuse Of Dominance Complaint Against Google Over Play Store Ban
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Monday dismissed a complaint filed by Liberty Infospace Pvt. Ltd. against Google, ruling that the tech giant did not abuse its dominant position by terminating the company's developer account on the Google Play Store.The Commission found no prima facie violation under Section 4 of the Competition Act, 2002, and closed the case without directing an investigation.The form-member coram of the commission, comprising Chairperson Ravneet Kaur and Members...
TRAI And CCI Are Sectoral Regulators With Defined Jurisdictions, Any Overlap Will Not Oust Jurisdiction Of Either: Kerala High Court
The Kerala High Court recently passed a judgment clarifying the scope and jurisdiction of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).Justice D.K. Singh in his 142 page judgment laid down the position of law while hearing Writ Petitions stating an alleged 'conflict' of jurisdiction between the two regulatory bodies. The court observed that CCI is a sectoral regulator, so far as it relates to the curbing of anticompetitive practices in India...