Parliamentary Committee Calls for Digital Competition Bill, E-commerce Code

India's Standing Committee on Finance has urged the government to finalize the Digital Competition Bill (DCB) and expand its scope to include virtual assistants and cloud services. The committee advocates for a shift towards proactive, ex-ante regulation of digital markets to curb the dominance of large platforms.

The recommendations, outlined in the committee's 37th report presented to Parliament on August 10, 2026, also call for an e-commerce code of conduct. This code would address platform neutrality, algorithmic transparency, and non-discriminatory data access for smaller businesses. Additionally, the report proposes changes to the proposed Systemically Significant Digital Enterprise (SSDE) framework and increased resources for the Competition Commission of India (CCI).

The committee stated that the current ex-post framework for enforcing competition laws is ineffective in the rapidly evolving digital economy. It argued that network effects and data advantages have concentrated economic power among large platforms acting as "gatekeepers." However, the committee stressed the need for a nuanced approach, avoiding blanket prohibitions and allowing for context-specific assessments.

The report specifically requests the inclusion of virtual assistants, currently excluded from the draft bill, in line with global practices. It also calls for strengthening the CCI's capabilities to analyze "big data," understand "algorithmic design," and assess the impact of "Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning" on competition and consumers. The committee highlighted significant staffing shortages within the CCI and called for its restructuring and the addition of specialized positions within its digital markets division.