India Fines E-commerce for Illegal Walkie-Talkies

The India — Central Consumer Protection Authority in India has taken action against 13 e-commerce platforms, including Amazon (company), Walmart — Flipkart, Meesho, and Meta Platforms (Facebook Marketplace), for facilitating the sale of unauthorized walkie-talkies. The authority identified over 16,970 non-compliant product listings and imposed penalties totaling Rs 44 lakh on eight entities, with Rs 10 lakh each levied on Amazon (company), Walmart — Flipkart, Meesho, and Meta Platforms. The violations include selling Personal Mobile Radios (PMRs) outside license-exempt frequency bands, without Equipment Type Approval (ETA) certification, and without proper disclosure of licensing requirements. The India — Central Consumer Protection Authority rejected the platforms' intermediary defense, stating that due diligence is required. To prevent future occurrences, the India — Central Consumer Protection Authority, in consultation with the India — Department of Telecommunications and India — Ministry of External Affairs, has notified new guidelines mandating verification of frequency compliance, ETA certification, full disclosure of licensing requirements, and automated monitoring. The India — Central Consumer Protection Authority also directed major e-commerce platforms to conduct self-audits and publish compliance certificates, citing concerns about harmful interference with critical national communication networks and public safety.