Competition / Antitrust

In a rare move, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) for the first time has exercised its sparingly used interim powers to redress competitive harm in the market for online intermediation services for booking hotels in India (OTA Market).

On 22 January 2021, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) published its market study on the Indian telecom sector (Market Study). Initiated by the CCI in January 2020 as part of its advocacy measures, the Market Study aims to analyse competition challenges in the wake of technological innovations, and regulatory changes.

In yet another case involving the real estate sector, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) dismissed allegations of abuse of dominant position by Haryana Urban Development Authority. (HUDA), a statutory urban planning agency.

Adam Smith’s free-market economy pivots around minimal government intervention so that markets can self-regulate and operate optimally. Unfortunately, in many cases, such environments allow the rise of monopolies through organic or inorganic growth. While true monopolies are rare in a free market economy, lack of government intervention often allows the rise of a single large player with many minor players with limited competitive ability. In these situations, the large firm is considered to have “monopoly power”.

In a positive development, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has removed the Non-Compete Covenants (NCCs) disclosure requirement from merger filings. To that effect, the CCI amended the Competition Commission of India (Procedure in regard to the transaction of business relating to combinations) Regulations, 2011 on 26 November 2020 (Amendment).