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Breaking: Delhi HC directs CCI to file reply within two weeks in Publicis Groupe case
The court has listed the matter for the next hearing on October 9, 2025, and also ordered to submit a copy of the prima facie opinion passed by the regulator.
Publicis, through TLG India, approached the Delhi High Court on August 11 seeking access to case records related to the CCI’s investigation.
The Delhi High Court has issued a notice to the Competition Commission of India (CCI) in a case filed by TLG India Private Limited on behalf of French advertising giant Publicis Groupe India, challenging the antitrust regulator’s handling of an ongoing investigation into alleged cartelisation in the advertising industry.
Justice Sachin Datta, hearing the matter, directed the CCI to submit its reply within two weeks. The court has listed the matter for the next hearing on October 9, 2025, and also ordered that a copy of the prima facie opinion passed by the regulator in Suo Motu Case No. 2 of 2024 be produced on the next date. The case pertains to alleged media cartelization and price fixing.
Senior advocate Ritin Rai appeared for Publicis, while senior advocate Jayant Mehta represented the CCI along with his legal team.
Publicis, through TLG India, approached the Delhi High Court on August 11 seeking access to case records related to the CCI’s investigation. The company argued that without inspection of these files, its Indian operations and employees are “unable to understand the allegations against them and prepare a defence.”
The petition comes in the backdrop of a sweeping CCI probe launched in March 2025 into suspected price-fixing and collusion among major ad agencies on publicity rates and discounts. The investigation followed dawn raids on leading advertising groups including Publicis, WPP’s GroupM, Dentsu, Omnicom, Havas, Madison, IPG, and also extended to industry bodies such as the Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI), the Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA), and the Indian Broadcasting and Digital Foundation (IBDF).
Publicis is the first advertising company to challenge the regulator’s procedure in court. Earlier in July 2025, it had urged the CCI to keep “further investigation in abeyance” until it was allowed to review case documents. However, the regulator proceeded with its probe, issuing summons to Publicis’ South Asia management and seeking contracts, revenue-sharing agreements, and other records.
The CCI investigation was triggered by Dentsu’s disclosure in February 2024 under the regulator’s leniency programme, which allows companies admitting to malpractice and providing evidence to receive reduced penalties.
With the High Court’s direction, the CCI now faces a two-week deadline to formally respond to Publicis’ plea, setting the stage for a significant legal battle over procedural fairness in one of India’s largest ongoing antitrust investigations.
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