Xiaomi Urges Indian Antitrust Body to Recall Report Over Commercial Secrets

Chinese tech giant Xiaomi has requested India’s antitrust regulator, the Competition Commission of India (CCI), to recall a report that found the company and Walmart-owned Flipkart in breach of competition laws. According to sources, Xiaomi argues that the report contains sensitive commercial information that was not properly redacted before being shared with parties involved in the case.

The recall request could potentially delay the ongoing antitrust investigation, which began in 2021. A similar situation occurred in August when the CCI recalled a report on Apple following the company’s complaint about the disclosure of commercial secrets.

Sources familiar with the matter revealed that one of Xiaomi’s main concerns is that the report includes model-wise sales data, which the company considers highly confidential. Neither Xiaomi, Flipkart, nor the CCI have responded to requests for comment on the matter.

CCI investigation reports are not made public and are typically shared only with involved parties. If the recall is granted, the parties would be required to return the documents for further redaction before they are redistributed.

The CCI report had previously found that major e-commerce platforms, including Flipkart and Amazon, gave preferential treatment to select sellers, promoting certain listings over others. The report also noted that companies like Xiaomi colluded with these platforms to launch phones exclusively through their websites, which the commission deemed anti-competitive.

Research from Counterpoint shows that Xiaomi and South Korea’s Samsung dominate India’s smartphone market, together holding nearly 36% market share. Chinese competitor Vivo controls an additional 19%.

Xiaomi has reportedly not objected to similar findings in the CCI’s report on Amazon, which also alleged collusion on exclusive product launches in breach of Indian competition laws.

Xiaomi’s request mirrors a previous action taken by the CCI in response to Apple’s objections. In that case, the commission agreed to recall a report that accused Apple of exploiting its dominant position in the app store market on its iOS platform.

The CCI’s report on Flipkart concluded that the Indian units of several smartphone makers, including Samsung, Xiaomi, Motorola, Vivo, Lenovo, and Realme, engaged in exclusive product launches on Flipkart’s platform, a practice deemed “against free and fair competition” and harmful to consumer interests.