Earlier on 18 September, Google LLC removed the Indian made Paytm app from their Playstore, citing concerns over violations of anti-gambling policies. Paytm was running a cashback feature for their app, which Google claimed was akin to gambling and violated Playstore regulations.
After removing the app in the afternoon, it made a return to the Playstore once Paytm temporarily removed the cashback scheme. Google confirmed the development and shared a blog post in response to numerous press queries.
Paytm has since spoken out against this decision, calling the removal “unjustified”, claiming that Google themselves run a similar cashback scheme in their app Google Pay. Paytm alleged that Google forced them to remove their UPI cashback scheme, and against standard procedure, they were not given any opportunity to respond to the concerns raised by Google over their cashback policy. Responding to the allegations, a Google spokesperson in an emailed response said, offering cashbacks and vouchers alone do not constitute a violation of Google Play gambling policies. The American search engine giant stated that their policies expressly forbid online casinos or support for unregulated gambling apps that facilitate sports betting.
Apart from the obvious aspects of the whole incident, it raises a few interesting, yet concerning questions regarding the influence of American megacorps on the Indian economy. If Google removed the app outright from the Playstore, it goes on to show the kind of power an American company has over Indian digital services. Further with India being primarily an Android market, it reflects on the amount of dependence Indian banking applications might be having on a foreign entity. The removal of the Paytm app is not an isolated incident, or the first time something like this has happened. A few weeks ago, another app, Mobikwik was removed from the Playstore for promoting the Aarogya Setu app, meant for COVID-19 contact tracing among Indians. Interestingly, it was done as a mandate from the central bank in order to push up adoption of the app among Indians. The app was eventually reinstated, but these examples show the kind of power Google wields over Indian consumers.
Even though there are anti-trust laws in place throughout the world, it is practically very difficult to enforce them correctly. Amazon has already shown that they are willing to sustain heavy losses if it means that they gain absolute dominance over a marketplace. Google has much more power in India, owing to the huge Android user base. Millions of Indian users rely on Android apps like Paytm, Google Pay and PhonePe for paying their bills, shopping and transferring money to different accounts, giving the Google Playstore unprecedented power over their financial lives. Unless appropriate measures are enforced, Google will continue to consolidate and expand on their influence and there will be no stopping them.
