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[1/2] Apple iPhones are seen inside India's first Apple retail store during a media preview, a day ahead of its launch in Mumbai, India, April 17, 2023. While all manufacturers including Samsung (005930.KS) have agreed to India's plan, Apple is pushing back. Apple, whose India lobbying efforts are being reported for the first time, and India's IT ministry, did not respond to Reuters requests for comment. Renowned Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has estimated 12-14% of iPhone production in 2023 will be from India, with the number set to rise to as much as 25% next year. In terms of market share, Apple accounts for 6% of India's booming smartphone market, compared with just about 2% four years ago.

Persons: Francis Mascarenhas, Apple, Narendra Modi, Ming, Chi Kuo, Prabhu Ram, Aditya Kalra, Susan Fenton Organizations: Apple, REUTERS, DELHI, European Union, Samsung, India's, Reuters, IT, Research, Indian, Consumers, Industry Intelligence, CyberMedia, Thomson Locations: Mumbai, India, New Delhi, U.S, KS, EU, PLI, China

People are seen outside the main gate of the Pegatron facility following a fire incident at the facility near Chennai, India, September 26, 2023. REUTERS/Praveen Paramasivam Acquire Licensing RightsCHENGALPATTU, India Sept 26 (Reuters) - A production shutdown at Apple supplier Pegatron's (4938.TW) India iPhone factory is expected to extend into Wednesday and disruptions could last longer as authorities investigate a fire at the Taiwanese firm's only India plant, four sources said. One of the sources said Apple representatives were collaborating with Pegatron after the incident. The affected Pegatron India plant accounts for 10% of Apple's iPhone production in the country. Pegatron, which started iPhone assembly in India in September last year, is also in talks to open a second Indian contract facility for Apple near the existing one in Tamil Nadu.

Persons: Praveen, Pegatron, Praveen Paramasivam, Aditya Kalra, Kim Coghill, Jacqueline Wong Organizations: REUTERS, Apple, India iPhone, Pegatron Corporation, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Chennai, India, TW, Chengalpattu, Tamil Nadu, Wistron, Indian

But Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani snatched IPL rights away in a $2.9 billion bid last year, and then streamed games for free. Soon, Disney subscribers fled - out of 61 million users in October, roughly 21 million had left by July. It retains digital streaming rights but last year licensed the TV broadcast rights to Indian's Zee Entertainment (ZEE.NS) for around $1.5 billion, a source said. In the United States, ad-free Disney+ streaming service subscription rates are set to rise by 27% to $13.99 per month. By contrast in India, Disney+ Hotstar service costs $3.62 a month.

Persons: Anushree, India's Ambani Hotstar, Walt Disney, Disney, Mukesh Ambani, That's, JioCinema, Sivanandan, Daoud Jackson, Bob Iger's, Nancy Lee, Ambani, Aditya Kalra, Munsif, Dawn Chmielewski, Muralikumar Organizations: ICC Men's Cricket, REUTERS, Companies Disney India, Century Fox, Indian Premier League, Disney, Reuters, Asia, Cricket, Indian's Zee Entertainment, IPL, Blume Ventures, Hotstar, Staff, Media Partners, Netflix, JioCinema, Thomson Locations: Gurugram, India, Burbank, Disney India, United States, New Delhi, Bengaluru, Dawn, Los Angeles

The Deloitte company logo is seen at their office in Gurugram, India, June 13, 2023. The auditor's resignation has brought fresh scrutiny of the financial management at Adani Group, led by Indian billionaire Gautam Adani. "The Audit Committee (of Adani Ports) was of the view that the grounds advanced by Deloitte for resignation as Statutory Auditor were not convincing or sufficient to warrant such a move," it said. Adani Ports has named MSKA & Associates, an independent member firm of BDO International, as its new auditor, it said in the statement. Deloitte in May first pointed to certain transactions flagged by Hindenburg in its report and gave only a qualified opinion related to Adani Ports, indicating concerns by a company's auditor.

Persons: Anushree, Gautam Adani, Hindenburg, Aditya Kalra, Ros Russell Organizations: Deloitte, REUTERS, U.S, Adani Group, GQG Partners, Sanghi Industries, Associates, BDO International, Thomson Locations: Gurugram, India, Adani Ports, Australia, New Delhi

The proposal was delivered to the streaming platforms at a June 20 meeting at the Information and Broadcasting Ministry. The government highlighted the need for a "more proactive approach" to ensure that streaming content, "including international content", aligns with a so-called code of ethics, the minutes showed. That code already mandates providers to exercise caution on content that could incite violence or be sensitive for religious reasons. The proposal also comes as streaming giants protest a government order to add 50-second tobacco health warnings in each piece of content, and two years after India ordered the setting up self-regulatory bodies for complaints about streaming content. Suhasini Maniratnam of the Digital Publisher Content Grievance Council, told the gathering pre-censorship could hurt the industry growth and cost jobs, and that given the high volume of content "there is a need to specifically act" against obscene and vulgar content.

Persons: OTT, Anurag Thakur, Thakur, Suhasini, Aditya Kalra, Robert Birsel Organizations: Netflix, Disney, Information and Broadcasting Ministry, Reuters, Media Partners, Amazon, Apple, Industry, Broadcasting, Thomson Locations: India, DELHI, New Delhi, Bengaluru

The resignations of GV Ravishankar of Peak XV Partners, earlier Sequoia Capital India, Russell Dreisenstock of Prosus, and Chan Zuckerberg Initiative's Vivian Wu mean Byju's board now only comprises the founder's family. In a statement to Reuters on Friday, Byju's said it is in discussions with investors about reshaping the board, including the addition of independent directors. A "few" investors had to vacate their board seats as their shareholding dropped below the required minimum threshold, necessitating a board reshuffle, it said. The confirmation of the resignations comes after Reuters and other media outlets reported on Thursday that three Byju's board members had quit recently. On Friday, sources told Reuters that the edtech was asking its three global investors to reconsider their decision to quit its board.

Persons: Russell Dreisenstock, Chan Zuckerberg, Vivian Wu, Byju's, Akriti Sharma, Shivani Tanna, Shounak Dasgupta, Anil D'Silva Organizations: GV, XV Partners, Sequoia Capital, Blackrock, Reuters, Deloitte, Thomson Locations: Sequoia, Sequoia Capital India, Bengaluru

[1/2] The Starlink logo is seen in front of the Indian flag in this illustration taken, June 21, 2023. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, OneWeb and Starlink parent SpaceX, did not respond. Deloitte says India's satellite broadband service market will grow 36% a year to reach $1.9 billion by 2030. Starlink is waiting for clarity on India's spectrum allocation before firming up its commercial strategy, another source said. "I'd expect Starlink to make high-profile free offers elsewhere in order to try and demonstrate what India could be missing out on," he said.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Starlink, India's Ambani, Elon Musk, Mukesh Ambani, Narendra Modi, Musk, Ambani, OneWeb, Tim Farrar, Aditya Kalra, Munsif Vengattil, Aditi Shah, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: REUTERS, DELHI, Reliance, Indian, Ambani's, Telecom Regulatory Authority of, SpaceX, Reuters, Deloitte, Foreign, TMF Associates, Thomson Locations: India, U.S, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India

As part of India's anti-tobacco drive, the health ministry last month ordered streaming platforms to insert static health warnings during smoking scenes within three months. IAMAI asked the health ministry to revisit the "onerous" rules, saying a survey had shown viewers were indifferent to depictions of smoking on streaming platforms, the letter said. Beyond Hollywood content, streaming companies Netflix (NFLX.O), Amazon (AMZN.O), Disney (DIS.N) and JioCinema have become increasingly popular in India. Activists have welcomed India's new rules, saying it would discourage smoking in a country where tobacco kills 1.3 million people each year. All smoking and alcohol drinking scenes in movies in India's cinemas and on TV, under law, require health warnings, but there were so far no regulations for the streaming giants.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Mukesh Ambani's, IAMAI, Woody Allen, Blue Jasmine, Sanjay Seth, Seth, Aditya Kalra, William Maclean Organizations: Netflix, Disney, REUTERS, Reuters, Internet, Mobile Association of India, Health Foundation, Thomson Locations: DELHI, India

[1/2] A smartphone with the Netflix logo lies in front of displayed "Streaming service" words in this illustration taken March 24, 2020. Companies often face legal cases and police complaints their content sometimes hurt religious sentiment, and many have self-censored content over the years. As part of India's anti-tobacco drive, the health ministry this week ordered streaming platforms should within three months insert static health warnings during smoking scenes. The companies, and India's health ministry, did not respond to a Reuters request for comment. But in India, companies from Netflix to Amazon (AMZN.O) to Disney (DIS.N), also have popular Hindi content which often shows Bollywood actors smoking, something activists say encourages tobacco use.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Mukesh Ambani's, Woody Allen, Blue Jasmine, Ambani's JioCinema, Kaushik Moitra, Dylan Mohan Gray, Aditya Kalra, Biplob Kumar Das, Tony Tharakan, Shilpa Jamkhandikar, David Evans Organizations: Netflix, REUTERS, Disney, Companies, Reuters, NBCUniversal, Warner Bros, Bharucha, Partners, Thomson Locations: India, DELHI, New Delhi, Bengaluru

India's antitrust body in October fined Google $275 million in two cases, which involved abusing its dominant position in the Android operating system market, and pushing developers to use its in-app payment system. "The ministry has to take action," Chandrasekhar said. India's competition watchdog has begun another inquiry into Google after Tinder owner Match Group (MTCH.O) and many startups alleged that a new service fee system Google uses for in-app payments breaches the competition commission's October decision. Google has previously said the service fee supports investments in the Google Play app store and the Android mobile operating system, ensuring it can distribute it for free. About 97% of India's 620 million smartphones run on Android, and the company counts India as a critical growth market.

REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis/File PhotoSummarySummary Companies Reliance's JioCinema to lock horns with Netflix, DisneyWarner deal to boost English content, local content in focus tooExecutives say Warner deal will boost Reliance streaming plansJioCinema content quality key to beat rivals, analyst saysMUMBAI, April 28 (Reuters) - The video streaming business of Mukesh Ambani, Asia's richest person, is likely to focus on pricing and local content following a deal with Warner Bros as it seeks to challenge the likes of Disney and Netflix, industry sources said. While Netflix and other rivals boast of content specially created for the India audience, JioCinema's current free offerings largely include old Hindi and local language movies. The big challenge is lack of fresh local and global content on JioCinema, something that will be become even more critical as the IPL season ends next month. They have also diversified into regional local language content. The only way to scale up is to really differentiate your content and make sure execution is right," he said.

Cook will meet Modi on Wednesday in New Delhi, said the two sources, who included an Indian government official. One of the sources added the Apple chief would also meet India's deputy IT minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar. Modi's office declined to comment, while Apple and the IT ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The sources did not elaborate, but Cook's meetings come amid Apple's growing focus on India, the world's second-largest smartphone market. The Mumbai store is in the premier Reliance Jio World Drive mall, home to luxury clothing and jewellery brands like Michael Kors, Kate Spade and Swarovski.

[1/2] The Epic Games logo, maker of the popular video game "Fortnite", is pictured on a screen in this picture illustration August 14, 2020. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/Illustration/File PhotoNEW DELHI, Feb 14 (Reuters) - U.S. firm Epic Games is challenging Google in an Indian tribunal for not complying with some portions of an antitrust directive, alleging that the tech giant is not hosting the gaming company's app store on Google's Play Store app. Maker of the popular video game "Fortnite", Epic operates its own app store, Epic Games Store, that offers games and other apps for download. The company claims in the filing it is "exploring launching" the Games Store app on Google Play Store and has been "adversely affected" by Google not complying with the CCI order. Epic is known for campaigns against Apple (AAPL.O) and Google for charging high app store commissions.

Xiaomi India did not share the agreement with the bank due to confidentiality reasons, Deutsche told investigators, according to the documents. A spokesperson for Deutsche Bank declined to comment. Qualcomm, in a statement, said under "the license with Qualcomm, Xiaomi India pays royalties on all devices sold in India". In that statement, it said Xiaomi India was an affiliate and one of the Xiaomi Group companies, which entered into a legal agreement with Qualcomm. Indian authorities do not agree with that and say Xiaomi India only acts as a reseller of smartphones that are made by contract manufacturers.

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationNEW DELHI, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) Google is pausing the enforcement of a policy that requires app developers in India to use its proprietary billing system for selling digital goods, following a ruling by the country's antitrust body. Google had previously set an extended deadline of Oct. 31 for developers in India to integrate apps with its Google Play billing system, which collects a commission that ranges from 15%-30% for each sale. The Competition Commission of India (CCI), however, ordered Google last week not to restrict app developers from using third-party billing or payment processing services in India, while fining it $113 million. In a website update to developers on Tuesday, Google said the requirement to use its billing system still applied for users outside the country, adding it was reviewing legal options in India. Google on its part has begun to allow alternative payment systems in countries including India on a pilot basis, charging lower commissions.

The U.S. company is facing a series of antitrust cases and the tightening of existing tech-sector regulations in India. The competition watchdog is separately looking in to Google's business conduct in the smart TV market and its in-app payments system. The Android-related probe, started in 2019, was sparked by a complaint from two junior Indian antitrust research associates and a law school student. Google was ordered by India on Thursday not to restrict smartphone users from uninstalling its pre-installed apps like Google Maps and Gmail. Google's Android operating system powers 97% of India's 600 million smartphones, according to Counterpoint Research.

A man takes a picture of a friend in front of a sign showing installation of the 5G network in New Delhi, India, October 3, 2022. The agenda includes holding talks "to prioritise" and release software upgrades for supporting the high-speed network, the notice for the closed-door meeting stated. Airtel's website on Tuesday showed "Apple yet to update software" for all of Apple iPhones' 12 to 14 models under its 5G compatible section. A third source with direct knowledge of the issue said Apple was in the process of testing and validating different 5G offerings from network providers in India. Lack of 5G software upgrades has already irked users.

FILE PHOTO: The logo for Google LLC is seen at the Google Store Chelsea in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., November 17, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo/File PhotoNEW DELHI, Sept 20 (Reuters) - Indian online gaming platform WinZO has sued Google (GOOGL.O) to stop the tech giant from allowing real-money games for fantasy sports and rummy on its platform, saying that Google's doing so is discriminatory, a legal filing seen by Reuters showed. In its lawsuit filed at the Delhi High Court, WinZO said it had contacted Google on Sept. 10 to contest the updated policy, saying it was "unfair". WinZO, which is backed by U.S.-based venture firm Griffin Gaming Partners, has a valuation of more than $350 million. The lawsuit shows WinZO recorded annual revenue of about $13 million in 2020-21.

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