Under its amended warranty policy for India in 2016, Intel had disallowed availing warranty benefits unless the product was purchased from an authorised dealer in India
CCI held that Intel was engaging in discriminatory practices in India through the policy as such warranty conditions did not exist in its other markets
The watchdog also held that the warranty policy “limited the choice of consumers” and caused an adverse effect on Indian users
The Competition Commission of India has imposed a penalty of ₹27.38 Cr ($3 Mn) on chipmaking giant Intel for allegedly abusing its dominance in the boxed microprocessors (BMP) market in the country.
The fine was imposed on the company for violating Section 4 of the Competition Act, 2002 over unfavourable warranty policies in the country.
As per the complaint, Intel amended its warranty policy for India in April 2016. Under the new regime, warranty on BMPs was only eligible if the product had been purchased from an authorised Indian distributor of Intel products.
As a result of the policy, customers who had bought Intel BMPs from authorised dealers in other countries were denied warranty benefits in India.
Based on the complaint and the subsequent investigation, the antitrust watchdog held that Intel abused its dominant position in the Indian BMP market by engaging in discriminatory warranty practices. The CCI order added that such a policy did not exist in Intel’s other markets like China and Australia.
Additionally, CCI held that the warranty policy “limited the choice of consumers” and caused an adverse effect on Indian users.
“The Commission also found the aforesaid policy to have limited the choice of consumers and parallel importers and thereby causing an appreciable adverse effect on Indian consumers. Accordingly, the Commission found the conduct of Intel in contravention of provisions of Section 4 of the Act,” read the CCI order.
In its order, the CCI also noted that the ₹27 Cr fine was calculated based on 8% of Intel’s average relevant turnover for eight years, when the warranty policy was in place. The watchdog also added that since the policy was discontinued in 2024, the penalty amount was reduced.
With this, Intel has joined a growing list of big tech firms that have been fined by the country’s competition regulator. In 2022, the competition commission slapped two separate fines totalling INR 2,200 Cr on Google for abusing its dominance in the Android devices market and with regards to its Play Store policies.
In November 2024, CCI also imposed a penalty of INR 213.14 Cr on social media giant Meta with regards to the 2021 WhatsApp privacy policy case.
The watchdog has also found iPhone maker Apple guilty of abusing its dominant position with regards to its app store policies. Earlier this year, Apple moved the Delhi High Court to stop the CCI from seeking its global financial records in relation to the ongoing antitrust probe.
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