Two meetings have been scheduled by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to address the issues raised by the Digital Competition Bill. On June 13, the Ministry, representatives from the Competition Commission of India (CCI), and the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) will meet for the first time to talk about issues and recommendations pertaining to the Digital Competition Bill.
The bill attempts to break Big Tech companies' monopoly. The IT Ministry has received multiple comments on the Bill from industry stakeholders, thus a follow-up meeting with Secretary MeitY as the chairman is scheduled for June 18.
An email notice sent by Meity stated, “Numerous representations are being received.. on the draft Digital Competition Bill, raising serious concerns regarding the impact of the proposed Bill on data and digital markets. In this regard, a meeting is scheduled under the chairmanship of Secretary, MeitY in the presence of AS (Additional Secretary), MeitY and officials to discuss the representations…”
In order to combat Big Tech's anti-competitive actions, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs introduced the digital competition bill in February 2024. Although large IT corporations have expressed their worries, startups have also stated that the measure will negatively affect them. However, there are differing opinions because the draft Digital Competition Bill has also received substantial support from a number of companies. A faction within the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) expressed their disapproval of the industry body's submission of the Digital Competition Bill earlier in the month, and they urged the Ministry of Corporate Affairs to expeditiously proceed with ex-ante rules.
Four internet companies—Bharat Matrimony, Match Group, ShareChat, and Hoichoi—expressed a different opinion from IAMAI's submission in a letter to the Ministry. In order to address the long-standing concerns of Indian startups, these corporations have stressed the necessity of ex-ante rules to prevent the anti-competitive actions of Big Tech companies. These regulations are intended to limit customer choice, inhibit innovation, and impede the growth of emerging businesses.
