Apple warns Delhi High Court that CCI’s global turnover rule could trigger $38-billion penalty

Apple has informed the Delhi High Court that the Competition Commission of India’s amended penalty framework, which allows fines to be calculated on the basis of a company’s global turnover rather than India-specific revenue, exposes the iPhone maker to a potential penalty of nearly $38 billion, as stated in its petition reviewed by Business Standard. The company approached the court on Tuesday challenging the provisions that empower the regulator to impose penalties on global turnover, arguing that the revised rule is arbitrary and disproportionate.

Apple has also contested the retrospective application of the amendment, noting that the CCI had in March instructed the firm to provide audited financial statements for financial years 2022, 2023 and 2024. The company stated that its maximum exposure, calculated at 10 per cent of its average global turnover across all products and services during those three financial years, could reach approximately $38 billion, and said such retrospective imposition would be irrational and grossly disproportionate, rendering the amended penalty provisions inconsistent with Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution, as reported by Business Standard.

Apple further argued that the CCI lacks jurisdiction to consider its global turnover, stating that the interpretation enabling such a calculation is beyond the scope of the Competition Act. It said Section 32 of the Act allows only limited extraterritorial operation and does not permit the regulator to assess products or services marketed outside India when any alleged anti-competitive effect is confined to foreign territories. The company therefore informed the court that using global turnover generated from markets unrelated to the alleged conduct in India is irrational, disproportionate and contrary to constitutional principles, particularly Article 14.