The talk in town is that to avoid increased regulatory inspection over steep discounting methods, Amazon India and Flipkart chose a low-key approach to promote their Independence Day sales.

As India's competition authority investigates a number of the industry's business practices, online marketplaces, which often use the I-Day sales as a forerunner to aggressive promotions that run throughout the Christmas season, remained cautious.

The Competition Commission of India has currently got its hands busy digging deep into allegations of deep discounting by e-marketplaces, as well as the most popular therapy supplied to certain vendors, among other things.

It is most probable that the government may propose sweeping changes, such as including related events and logistical service providers in the definition of an e-commerce firm, prohibiting flash sales, and requiring the itemization of local alternatives when selling imported goods or services. E-commerce businesses have overwhelmingly criticized these proposals.

Both Flipkart and Amazon India held I-Day bargains starting around earlier this month but were careful not to draw attention to product reductions again.

Despite numerous warnings, industry participants ranging from online marketplaces to manufacturers, sellers, and analysts are optimistic that the Christmas season, which begins in early October, will see 40-50 percent more sales than the previous year's festive season. The dates for the main Diwali sales have yet to be determined.

The Supreme Court decided on August 9 that e-tailers like Flipkart and Amazon India must confront the CCI investigation and never back out. After a few hours, commerce minister Piyush Goyal issued an order to merchants to properly gather their complaints against e-commerce companies and report them to the competition watchdog.

It’s said that Flipkart and Amazon may launch major deals in early October and pair them with smaller events to demonstrate how they are assisting local businesses and bringing online shopping to the country's remote locations.

According to industry estimates, etailers made between $7 and $8 billion in gross merchandise value (GMV) during the holiday season last year. This comes at a time when, according to reports, Flipkart has seen an increase in sales of more than 80 percent compared to the period before the second wave of Covid-19 struck India in April.

Some companies, such as electronics producer boAt, anticipate a 40-50 percent increase in revenue over the previous 12 months. The momentum is in our favor. We are looking at a significantly faster growth than last year which should be in the neighborhood of 40-50 percent”, states Aman Gupta, co-founder, boAt, which develops wi-fi earbuds, headsets, and other devices.

Analysts believe that the e-commerce industry's sectoral issues are not going away, but they are unlikely to hold down holiday sales.

While specific advertising and sale plans are still being developed, it seems that a lot of marketing is migrating to digital because it is about attempting to communicate the bargains to the increasing online consumer base.