Concerned over disclosure of biz secrets, Xiaomi urges CCI to recall antitrust report

China's Xiaomi has requested India's antitrust body to withdraw its report, which found the company and Walmart’s Flipkart in violation of competition laws, due to concerns that it contains commercial secrets, according to two sources familiar with the matter. If the Competition Commission of India (CCI) recalls the report, it could delay the antitrust investigation, which began in 2021. In August, the CCI had similarly withdrawn an antitrust report on Apple after the company complained that sensitive business information was disclosed.

Xiaomi's application to the commission argues that the Flipkart investigation report includes confidential business data, such as model-wise sales figures, which should have been redacted before being shared with parties involved in the case, one of the sources explained.

Neither Xiaomi, Flipkart, nor the competition watchdog have responded to queries from Reuters regarding this matter. Investigation reports are typically not made public and are only shared with parties involved in the case. A recall would require the parties to return the report for further review and redactions before it can be reshared.

The CCI's findings suggest that e-commerce giants Amazon and Flipkart favored certain sellers, prioritized specific listings, and collaborated with companies like Xiaomi to launch exclusive products on their platforms, according to an earlier Reuters report citing the August findings on Amazon and Flipkart.

Counterpoint Research indicates that Xiaomi and South Korea's Samsung dominate the Indian smartphone market, with a combined market share of nearly 36%, while China's Vivo holds 19%. Xiaomi's concerns focus on the data in the Flipkart report, whereas it has not raised issues with the findings on Amazon, where investigators also alleged that Xiaomi and Amazon breached antitrust laws by colluding on online sales.

Xiaomi wants the commission to instruct all parties to return the Flipkart report and destroy any copies, so the watchdog can make further redactions before redistributing the document, according to one source.

The CCI had taken similar action in the case of Apple, where it was found that the U.S. company exploited its dominant market position for app stores on its iOS system, a claim Apple denies.

In its report on Flipkart, the watchdog stated that the Indian units of Xiaomi, Samsung, Motorola, Vivo, Lenovo, and Realme engaged in "exclusive product launches" on Flipkart’s platform, which was "against free and fair competition" and "against the interest of consumers."