Info Edge (India) Ltd. v. Google India Pvt. Ltd.
In the High Court of Madras
O.S.A. (CAD) 97-100, 102-110/2023
Before Chief Justice SV Gangapurwala and Justice PD Audikesavalu
Decided on January 19, 2024

Relevancy of the case: Jurisdiction of civil courts to hear a matter involving allegations of Google’s abuse of dominant position

Statutes and Provisions Involved

•  The Competition Act, 2002 (Section 4, 27(g), 42, 61, 62)
• The Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 (Section 10A, 17, 18, 24)
• The Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (Order VII Rule 11(d))
• The Indian Contract Act, 1872 (Section 16, 23, 27)
• The Information Technology Act, 2000

Relevant Facts of the Case

• The plaintiffs filed suits against Google’s policies related to the Google Play Billing System (GPBS) and User Choice Billing (UCB). They pursued a pronouncement that these policies were illegal and unenforceable.
• The defendants sought rejection of the plaints, pointing out the barring of jurisdiction of civil courts by relevant acts.
• The single judge allowed the defendant’s application, leading to the plaintiff filing for an appeal against the same decree.

Prominent Arguments by the Advocates

The plaintiff’s counsel argued that:

• Google’s actions, including policies related to Google Pay Billing and User Choice Billing, violated the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007.
• Such violations constitute breaches of statutory duty, like misuse of dominating positions and illegal policies, that civil courts can address.
• They cited issues like illegal debits and non-compliance with settlement periods.

The defendant’s counsel argued that:

• The suit is barred as issues fall under the Competition Act, 2000 and the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007. This makes the civil court intervention impermissible.
• The plaintiff’s actions amount to forum shopping by initiating multiple proceedings in different forums, indicating an attempt to circumvent established regulatory channels.

Opinion of the Bench

• The court examined the scope of jurisdictional bars under the Competition Act and the Payment and Settlement Systems Act. These legislations explicitly exclude the authority of civil courts.
• The dispute between the plaintiff and the defendant is not an alien dispute for the Competition Commission of India.
• The plaintiffs can also approach the RBI. It is appropriate for the authorities to deal with the disputes between the parties constituted under the special statute.

Decision

• The bench rejected the appeal and dismissed all the appeals and cross-objections.

Harmannat Kour, an undergraduate student at the Law School, University of Jammu, and Prachi Chakravarty, an undergraduate student at University Law College, Bangalore University, prepared this case summary during their internship with The Cyber Blog India in May/June 2024.