India’s competition regulator is asking a court to uphold a new rule that calculates antitrust fines using a company’s worldwide revenue. The dispute centers on Apple’s claim that the approach is unfair for violations that occur only in India. Regulators say the method is necessary to deter large multinationals.
India changed its law in November 2024. The update allows fines to be based on global turnover rather than revenue earned only in India. Officials argue that penalties tied only to local sales do not discourage misconduct by companies with massive international businesses. They say the new rule brings India in line with how other major jurisdictions handle competition cases.
Reuters reports that the Competition Commission of India filed its position with the Delhi High Court in December. The regulator said fines calculated on worldwide revenue keep real deterrent value in digital and cross-border markets. Otherwise, penalties risk becoming small enough for large firms to absorb.
Apple has asked the court to strike down the rule. The company argues that using global turnover could lead to disproportionate fines for conduct that took place in India alone. Apple says the method could expose it to a penalty as high as $38 billion following a competition investigation into its App Store. Apple denies any wrongdoing.
Fine method
The case stems from a long-running probe into Apple’s App Store practices. India’s competition authority began investigating in 2021 after a complaint from a local group. By mid-2024, the regulator concluded that Apple held significant influence over digital services and products in the country.
Since then, Apple has challenged both the findings and the way any fine would be calculated. The company says the global turnover method mirrors European practice but does not fit situations where the conduct and impact are limited to a single market.
The regulator rejects that view. It says focusing only on India revenue fails to deter behavior by large digital firms whose operations span many countries. It also says the law did not create new powers but clarified how turnover should be defined when setting penalties.
Dispute over retroactive use
Apple also accuses the authority of applying the 2024 change to earlier conduct. Regulators deny this. They argue that clarifying provisions can apply to ongoing cases because they explain the intent of the law rather than alter it.
There is also disagreement over the financial data requested from Apple. Regulators say they asked only for India-specific details. Apple says the scope of the request goes further and increases the risk of a much larger fine.
The underlying antitrust case has stretched over several years and includes multiple court challenges. A draft report released in 2024 was later withdrawn after Apple objected to the inclusion of sensitive material. Final findings and any penalty have not yet been issued.
The immediate question now is how fines should be calculated. The Delhi High Court will hear Apple’s challenge to the global turnover rule on January 27, 2026. The outcome will shape how India penalizes multinational companies in future competition cases and determine the scale of any sanction Apple may face.
