Google vows to cooperate with India antitrust authority after Android ruling

By Aditya Kalra NEW DELHI (Reuters) -Google said on Friday it will cooperate with India's competition authority after the country's top court upheld an antitrust order

forcing the U.S. firm to change how it markets its popular Android platform. The Competition Commission of India (CCI) ruled in October that Google, owned by Alphabet Inc,

exploited its dominant position in Android and told it to remove restrictionson device makers, including those related to pre-installation of apps and ensuring exclusivity of its

search. It also fined Google $161 million. On Thursday, Google lost a challenge in the Supreme Court to block the directives, getting seven days to comply. "We remain

committed to our users and partners and will cooperate with the CCI on the way forward," a Google spokesperson said in a statement to Reuters, without explaining the steps it

could take. "We are reviewing the details of yesterday's decision which is limited to interim relief and did not decide the merits of our appeal," Google said, adding that

it would continue to pursue its legal challenge to the Android decision. India's highest court has said a lower tribunal - where Google first challenged the Android

directives - can continue to hear the company's appeal and must rule by March 31. About 97% of 600 million smartphones in India run on Android, according to Counterpoint

Research estimates. Apple has just a 3% share.