Supreme Court quashes JioStar's plea, allows CCI probe into abuse of dominance in Kerala cable TV market

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to entertain a plea filed by Reliance Industries–owned streaming platform JioStar seeking to halt a probe by the Competition Commission of India into allegations of abuse of its dominant position in the Kerala cable television market.

A bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and Sandeep Mehta said the matter is at a preliminary stage and the market regulator may be allowed to continue with its probe.

"Sorry. Let the regulator investigate. It is only at a preliminary stage. Dismissed," the bench told senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for JioStar.

Rohagti submitted that Jiostar is bound under the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) Act, 1997, which fixes how much it can charge or give a discount.

"The question is, can you investigate in relation to a matter covered by the sectoral regulator. There is a judgment of the Bombay High Court in my favour," Rohatgi contended.

Justice Pardiwala told Rohatgi that the issue needs to be looked into.

The complainant, Asianet Digital Network Limited (ADNPL), has accused Jiostar of abusing its dominance in the television broadcasting space in Kerala in contravention of the Competition Act, 2002, by providing discriminatory discounting payments and preferential treatment to the Kerala Communicators Cable Limited (KCCL).

JioStar has challenged a Kerala High Court order dated December 3, 2025, which affirmed a single judge's order refusing to stay the investigation by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) into the allegations of violations of the Competition Act, 2002.

The CCI has directed the director general to initiate an investigation into the complaints filed by ADNPL, a digital TV service provider, against JioStar and its subsidiaries for alleged discriminatory pricing and excessive discounting to KCCL.

It was alleged in the complaint that due to the preferential treatment of KCCL, ADNPL suffered migration of its subscriber base, which fell steeply within a short span of five-six months.

Under Trai rules, broadcasters can offer discounts of up to 35 per cent and must follow a non-discriminatory pricing regime.

Asianet has claimed that JioStar effectively granted discounts of more than 50 per cent to KCCL through separate marketing or promotional agreements, which it termed sham arrangements.