India's digital sector faces legal turmoil, experts insights on new competition laws

As the digital sector or the new age companies gain more prominence in economies of the world including India, there have been several legal tangles as the sector evolves at a fast pace. Raging debate across the world on issues of cannabalisation, preferential practices, anti-competitive business, abuse of power, market dominance are common issues. Regulators grapple to evolve with the sector in forming relevant laws.

The digital ecosystem operating in India have recently been stirred by the newly proposed competition law for the digital sector which are ex-ante meaning to prevent anti-competitive conduct from occurring, as opposed to the current ex-post framework under the Competition Act. So pre-empting the future trajectory of the sector.

CNBC-TV18’s Nisha Poddar spoke to industry experts - Naval Chopra, Partner - Competition Law, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co; Lal Chand Bisu, Co-Founder & CEO, Kuku FM; Dinoo Muthappa, Partner - Competition Law, Talwar Thakore & Associates and Siddarth Pai, Founding Partner & CFO, 3one4 Capital on the requirement of a new law and also tie-it in with the burning issue of app store friction on which the recent news the Indian internet companies have been denied an interim relief by the Competition Commission.