Most members against separate digital competition rules: internet body IAMAI

An “overwhelming majority” of members of the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) are opposed to a separate competition law for digital companies as well as to ex-ante regulations, the industry body’s president Subho Ray wrote in an email to the grouping’s members on Tuesday.

ET has reviewed a copy of the email, which Ray has written in the backdrop of recent opposition from Indian tech founders to IAMAI’s draft views on digital competition law. Indian internet entrepreneurs have also alleged IAMAI of being a “mouthpiece of big tech”.

On Tuesday, ET reported that Indian internet entrepreneurs are up in arms against what they term as a lack of “credence” in IAMAI, the nodal industry grouping, and are demanding a change in the leadership of the apex body, which is currently chaired by Google India country head and vice president Sanjay Gupta, with WhatsApp India public policy director Shivnath Thukral being the vice chairman.


The IAMAI’s 24-member governing council is set to undergo elections later this month, and the new chairperson and vice chairperson will be elected.

“The genesis of the recent social media and media buzz is the issue of the government setting up a committee to purportedly bring in a separate competition law for digital companies. One of the key features of the proposed new competition law is likely to be ex-ante regulations. This means even before you have become large or dominant, your company would be subject to the new provisions,” Ray wrote in the email.

He added that the issue was first put before more than 75 members “of different segments in the public policy committee” for their views on March 6. Subsequently, drafts of its submissions were shared with more than 400 members.

Last Friday, ET reported that in a draft note circulated among its members, IAMAI flagged several observations made in a December 2022 report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance on anticompetitive practices by tech majors. People in the know of the developments had said that startups planned to oppose these views prepared by the industry body.

The IAMAI plans to submit its views to the Committee on Digital Competition Law (CDCL) that was formed by the central government in February this year.

Times Internet — part of the Times Group, which publishes ET — is a member of IAMAI.

“Yesterday (May 1) was the last date for members to submit written views on the issue to us. We hope to finalise our response by the end of this week and share it with the government,” Ray wrote in his mail.

“The current issue of CCI taking action against certain Indian as well as MNCs is a part of ex-post (case by case based on evidence) and the current competition law. IAMAI is, by its mandate, out of this process. I request members not to conflate the two issues,” Ray added.

The association members include multinational giants Google, Meta and Microsoft, as well as Indian companies such as Paytm, Udaan, Boat, PhonePe, Unacademy and Byju’s.

Notably, another group of Indian startups that represents companies such as Paytm, MapmyIndia, TrulyMadly and Matrimony.com has filed complaints against tech giant Google’s new in-app purchase billing system with the Competition Commission of India (CCI). Indian startups even accused IAMAI of not protecting the interest of startups in such issues against Google.

(Graphics & illustration by Rahul Awasthi)