Summary

  • India fined Google $113M for its anticompetitive billing practices back in 2022, a decision Google appealed to a tribunal.
  • The tribunal has now reduced the fine to $25M but upheld the earlier ruling of Google misusing its dominance in the app market.
  • Google has faced antitrust actions globally over Play Store policies, including the European Union, Japan, South Korea, and the US.

Google has taken a lot of heat worldwide for its Play Store billing practices, which have been labeled anti-competitive in several major markets. Mounting regulatory pressure has pushed Google to explore alternative ways for developers to use their own billing systems, but that still hasn’t satisfied many governments. On the heels of those lawsuits, Indian authorities have now ruled Google’s Play Store billing practices anti-competitive — for the second time.

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Back in late 2022, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) fined Google $113 million following an antitrust complaint from a bunch of local developers. The commission found Google guilty of abusing its dominant position in the Android smartphone market to strong-arm developers into using its own billing system. In response, Google completely gave on enforcing its new in-app Play Store billing policy in India.

Google then appealed to India’s National Companies Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT), which has now reduced the fine to around $25 million (via Bloomberg). However, the tribunal upheld CCI’s findings that Google misused its dominance and failed to create a level playing field for third-party app developers. This could lead to tighter regulations for the company’s billing practices down the line, though the final verdict document from NCLAT is still awaited.

This isn’t the first time Google has faced antitrust action over its billing policies. It has been hit with similar lawsuits and fines in Japan, South Korea, the European Union, and the United States — most notably in its high-profile battle with Epic Games in 2023 that labeled the Play Store an illegal monopoly.

Google is already piloting third-party billing

Under pressure from regulators worldwide, Google began testing its User Choice Billing system in mid-2022. The pilot has expanded to several markets, including Australia, Brazil, India, Japan, South Korea, the US, and most recently, the UK.

This system allows developers to offer an alternative billing option at checkout alongside Google Play’s own system, letting users choose how they want to pay. However, even for transactions made through third-party payment processors, Google still takes nearly the same revenue cut, minus 4% to account for payment processing fees it no longer incurs. Developers typically pay Google between 15% and 30% in commission for transactions done through the Play Store, with the majority falling in the lower bracket.