Multinational giant Apple has launched a major legal challenge against India’s revamped antitrust penalty framework, arguing that new rules allowing fines based on a company’s global turnover are unconstitutional and expose it to punitive and disproportionate sanctions.
The case, filed before the Delhi high court, marks the first direct attack on the amended Competition Act provisions that came into force last year and significantly expand the Competition Commission of India’s (CCI) fining powers.
The dispute comes at a critical time. Apple is already embroiled in an ongoing CCI investigation triggered by complaints from Match Group and a group of Indian start-ups, who allege that the company abuses dominance on the iOS app distribution and in-app payments market. CCI investigators concluded in 2023 that Apple had engaged in “abusive conduct” by restricting third-party payment processing and charging commissions of up to 30 percent. Apple denies all wrongdoing, and the regulator has yet to issue its final order.
According to Apple’s 545-page petition, applying the amended law could expose the company to a maximum penalty of around $38 billion—calculated as 10 percent of its average global turnover across the past three fiscal years. The company argues that such a regime is “arbitrary, unconstitutional and grossly disproportionate”, stressing that penalties should instead be tied only to the revenue generated in India by the specific business unit under scrutiny.
Apple has also objected to what it calls the retrospective use of the amended provisions. It cited a November 10 CCI decision in an unrelated matter where the global-turnover rule was applied to conduct that occurred a decade earlier, warning that it now has “no choice” but to seek judicial intervention to avoid a similar outcome in its own case.
The challenge lands amid rising scrutiny of Apple’s market power worldwide. The European Union already imposes fines of up to 10 percent of global turnover for antitrust breaches, and Indian regulators have signalled a similar toughening. Analysts note that while Apple remains a smaller player than Android in India, its user base has quadrupled in five years, increasing regulatory attention.
The Delhi high court will hear Apple’s plea on December 3. Competition experts say the law’s wording clearly permits global-turnover-based penalties, making the company’s challenge an uphill battle.
