The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has formally recalled its investigation order and closed its long-running antitrust inquiry into Google’s app store and advertising policies regarding real-money gaming (RMG) applications. The regulatory watchdog determined that recent legislative overhauls banning online real-money gaming nationwide have altered the relevant market, rendering any potential competition remedies legally unviable.

Origins of the Probe and Market Disparity

The antitrust investigation originated from a 2022 complaint filed by Indian gaming platform WinZO Games, which accused Google of abusing its dominant market position through the Google Play Store and Google Ads platform. WinZO argued that Google created an unfair "two-tier" market by operating a selective pilot program that permitted only specific real-money gaming categories namely Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) and Rummy while excluding all other skill-based RMG formats.

In November 2024, the CCI established a prima facie case that Google’s selective onboarding and restrictive payment-warning policies violated India's Competition Act, subsequently ordering a detailed investigation into the tech giant’s practices. Throughout the proceedings, Google sought to resolve the dispute by submitting commitment proposals to the CCI, offering to permit all legally compliant, certified skill-based RMG applications on its platforms.

Legislative Overhaul and Legal Infeasibility

The regulatory landscape shifted dramatically with the enactment of the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, along with its corresponding rules, which fully entered into force on May 1, 2026. The new statutory framework enacted a blanket prohibition on all online money games, their advertisements, and related financial transaction facilitation, effectively eliminating the legal distinction between games of skill and games of chance for monetary wagering.

In anticipation of the statutory shift, Google terminated its RMG pilot program and stopped accepting all real-money gaming advertisements in India starting January 2026. Following the implementation of the law, WinZO formally requested to withdraw its antitrust complaint during a CCI hearing on August 25, 2026.

Regulatory Conclusion Without Merits Finding

While the CCI noted it was not legally bound to drop proceedings simply because a complainant sought withdrawal, the commission concluded that continuing the probe served no practical purpose. Mandating that Google open its Play Store or Google Ads platform to RMG developers would directly force the company to violate statutory federal law.

The CCI clarified that its decision to close the inquiry does not constitute an exoneration of Google’s past conduct or a ruling on the merits of the original anti-competitive claims. Furthermore, the commission explicitly reserved the right to re-examine Google’s platform policies should the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act be stayed, struck down, or repealed in the future.

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