Samsung Fights Back Against Antitrust Allegations in India

Samsung has contested India's competition watchdog's actions of detaining employees and seizing data during a raid linked to an antitrust probe involving Amazon and Flipkart. The company argues the raid was unlawful and aims to overturn the investigation's findings through a court filing.

Samsung has challenged the actions of India's competition watchdog, accusing it of unlawfully detaining employees and seizing data during a raid for an antitrust investigation involving Amazon and Flipkart, as per a legal filing.

The South Korean tech company is embroiled in the Competition Commission of India's probe, which in August concluded that Samsung and other smartphone makers broke antitrust laws through collusion with Amazon and Flipkart to launch products exclusively online. Samsung's filing in the High Court in Chandigarh seeks to invalidate the investigation’s findings and argues against the CCI's material seizure from its employees during a 2022 raid at an Amazon vendor.

The CCI found that both Amazon and Flipkart were in violation of competition laws by favoring specific sellers. Samsung asserts that it is unjustly implicated and claims cooperative participation in the investigation. Moreover, the inclusion of smartphone makers could complicate legal obligations for companies like Samsung, emphasizing the need for compliance under India's competition rules.

(With inputs from agencies.)