Digital competition law: Large internet firms not in favour of ‘ex-ante’ regulations

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

internet firms Zomato, Swiggy, Flipkart and Oyo have opposed the new regulations on digital competition proposed by a government-appointed committee to pre-emptively regulate abuse of antitrust laws.

In a report submitted late Tuesday, the committee proposed a new digital competition law with an «ex-ante» framework to address potential abuse of dominance involving big tech companies. Prior to submitting the report, the Committee on Digital Competition Law had sought stakeholder comments.

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Indian companies that supported the proposal of ex-ante regulations include Paytm and MakeMyTrip, albeit with caveats.

To be sure, the Internet and Mobile Association of India, which represents all these firms in addition to big tech companies, had also opposed the proposals in its submission to the committee, chaired by corporate affairs secretary Manoj Govil. The companies also separately submitted their views.

Also read | ETtech Explainer: What the proposed digital competition law looks to regulate

Food and grocery delivery firm Zomato told the committee that it was not in favour of ex-ante regulations, but if introduced, those should be tailored to the Indian ecosystem, conducive to the growth of startups, and should not stifle innovation or consumer interest.

Zom