Apple is challenging India’s new antitrust law, which could see the major tech company face a fine of up to US$38 billion (A$58.23 billion), according to a court filing at the Delhi High Court.
This is the first challenge against India’s anti-trust law since last year allows the Competition Commission of India (CCI) to use global turnover when calculating the penalties it imposes on companies for abusing their market dominance.
In a filing viewed by Reuters, Apple said it was “unconstitutional, grossly disproportionate, unjust” for the CCI to use turnover when calculating penalties.
The CCI have been investigating complaints from an alliance of Indian startups and Tinder-owner Match Group, which accuse Apple of “abusive conduct” through forcing developers to pay high commissions for in-app purchases.
The CCI’s final verdict is still pending, but it said its “prima facie view [is] that mandatory use of Apple’s IAP for paid apps and in-app purchases restricts the choice available to the app developers to select a payment processing system of their choice,” in an order in December 2021.
This comes as Apple recorded 5 million shipments in India during Q3 of 2025, its highest ever, according to data from IDC.
The U.S. tech giant is expected to sell around 15 million iPhones in India this year and could rank among the top 5 smartphone companies there, according to IDC associate vice president Navkender Singh.
In 2024, Apple’s exports increased 42% from the year before, a record US$12.8 billion.
At the time of writing, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) shares rose 0.21% to US$277.55.
