Amidst an antitrust investigation by the Competition Commission of India (CCI), online food delivery platform Zomato asserted that the company complies with Indian competition laws and emphasised its readiness to cooperate with the investigation. In a regulatory filing, Zomato said, “We will continue to work closely with the Commission to explain why all our practices are in compliance with the Competition Act and that they do not have any adverse effect on competition in India. Hope the above addresses your queries. We remain available to address any further queries that you may have on this matter.”
Per media reports surfaced earlier, an investigation by CCI had found that Zomato and Swiggy had breached competition laws, with their business practices favouring restaurant chains listed on their platforms. Zomato entered into “exclusivity contracts” with partners in return for lower commissions, while Swiggy guaranteed business growth to certain players if they listed exclusively on its platform, according to non-public documents prepared by the CCI, reviewed by Reuters.
Zomato and Swiggy called the media report misleading. “Since the intimation of April 5, 2022, the Commission, on merits, has not passed any order. Hence, there have been no further reportable events under the LODR Regulations that obligates the Company to make any disclosures under Regulation 30. Accordingly, the aforementioned news article is misleading,” Zomato said.
In a statement, Swiggy said that it is yet to receive confidential details of the findings from the CCI. “Once Swiggy submits its response and CCI conducts a hearing on the matter, CCI will pass its decision on whether any competition law violations have occurred. Currently, it’s at a preliminary stage and no final decision or order has been issued regarding Swiggy’s practices since 2022.” The food delivery platform also maintained that it is “fully cooperating with the investigation and is committed to complying with the extant laws of the country”.
Earlier, Reuters had reported that per CCI’s investigation, exclusivity arrangements between Swiggy, Zomato and their respective restaurant partners are “preventing the market from becoming more competitive”. The CCI documents are not public and were shared with Swiggy, Zomato and the complainant restaurant groups in March 2024. Their findings have not been previously reported. The detailed investigation was ordered by the CCI in April 2022 and the probe report was submitted to the regulator earlier this year.
From: financialexpress
Financial News
