Last week, Epic Games sued Samsung over the new “Auto Blocker” feature on Galaxy phones. The Fortnite maker may have scored a moral victory even before the case heads to court. It recently won a lengthy legal battle against Google, a decision that could pave the way for third-party app stores on the Play Store. While this is a significant win, a Google appeal is almost certain.
Epic Games wins its Play Store monopoly lawsuit against Google
Epic Games originally sued Google in August 2020, accusing the company of running an app store monopoly on Android devices. This came after Google kicked Fortnite off the Play Store for bypassing its in-app payment regulations. Epic used a third-party billing service to avoid Google’s commission. Its lawsuit alleged Google of unlawfully stifling competition in the Android app store market.
On Monday, Judge James Donato issued his final ruling in the four-year-long case. He ordered Google to open up the Play Store to competition for three years (Epic asked for a six-year relaxation). The ruling forces the Android maker to distribute third-party app stores like Epic Games Store within Play Store. It also must allow rival stores access to the full Play Store catalog.
Additionally, Google can’t make developers use its billing services. They must have the freedom to choose billing services on their own. Developers can openly lead users to other payment options, provide external links to download their apps from other stores, and set their own prices for apps. Google is also barred from signing paid partnerships with device makers to exclusively use its store.
While Google is likely to appeal this ruling, it’s a massive moral victory for Epic Games. Its new lawsuit against Samsung, which involves Google too, will be heard by the same judge. It focuses on Samsung’s Auto Block feature, which is enabled by default and blocks users from installing apps from unauthorized third-party sources. Epic claims neither Samsung nor Google provides a way for rival stores to become “authorized.” If Google fails to overturn the ruling, Auto Blocker becomes significantly less relevant.
