On July 12, 2018, CCI passed an order under Section 27 of the Competition Act imposing a penalty on the All India Chess Federation (‘AICF’), for contravention of provisions of Section 3 and 4 of the Competition Act.The information was filed by four chess players contending that the AICF registration form contained a declaration that denied their participation in any tournament / championship that was not authorized by AICF, contravention of which led to the players being banned for a period of one year from such participation along with confiscation of 50% of the prize money by AICF. Further, such participants were also required to issue an unconditional apology along with an undertaking promising the non-participation in any such future events that were not authorized by AICF.CCI delineated two separate markets while defining the relevant market, namely: (i) market for organization of professional chess tournaments/events in India; and (ii) the market for services of chess players in India. In view of the regulatory powers enjoyed by AICF in organising professional chess tournaments and being the dominant consumer of services that was provided by chess players, CCI observed and concluded that AICF enjoyed a dominant position in both the relevant markets. CCI found certain conditions imposed on the players by way of AICF’s mandatory registration form as too harsh, especially Clause Z, which discusses the disciplinary actions of the AICF in the event a player participates in a tournament not authorised by AICF. CCI held that the disciplinary actions were very harsh, especially due to the absence of any opportunity for hearing or a provision whereby a player could take prior permission of the AICF for participating in a non-authorised tournament, leading to a contravention of Section 4(2)(b)(i) of the Competition Act. Furthermore, CCI took note of a caution displayed on AICF’s website, prohibiting players from participating in tournaments organized by other rival bodies, including the Chess Association of India. To this end, CCI found AICF to have used its dominance to deny its rivals access to the relevant markets, thereby contravening Section 4(2)(c) of the Competition Act.CCI further noted that the undertakings mandated by AICF concerning non-participation of its players in non-AICF authorized tournaments were akin to exclusive distribution and refusal to deal as understood under Sections 3(4)(c) and 3(4)(d) of the Competition Act. Accordingly, CCI directed AICF to cease and desist from all such conduct recognized as amounting to abuse of dominance, to formulate procedure for authorizing chess tournaments in a fair, transparent and equitable manner, and to ensure all disciplinary actions against the players are proportional, fair and transparent. CCI directed AICF to file a compliance report within 60 days of the order’s receipt. Furthermore, CCI also imposed a penalty of ₹ 0.69 million on AICF for infringing provisions under Section 4 of the Competition Act.