The decision was made in Epic Games’ lawsuit against Google and paves the way for the Epic Games Store to be available on Android devices in North America.
Google has been handed a notable defeat in court over its crackdown on downloadable apps on its Android mobile device ecosystem and its enforcement in North America. In a lawsuit between Epic Games and Google, a U.S. judge has issued a permanent injunction against Google, opening up the Android ecosystem to purchasing and downloading methods outside of Google Play, and opening up the Epic Games Store mobile app on Android. The path was opened.
As CNBC reported this week, the injunction was filed by California Judge James Donato. Judge Donato’s injunction orders that an alternative to the Google Play Store be allowed for downloading apps to Android mobile devices. This is a huge win for Epic Games, removing obstacles to the launch of the Epic Game Store mobile app in North America and allowing them to bring Fortnite to mobile players on Android devices.
Big news! The Epic Game Store and other app stores will be coming to the Google Play Store in the US in 2025 thanks to the Epic vs. Google victory. Google’s scary screen and Google’s 30% app tax don’t apply. https://t.co/1g6uuw1CJB
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) October 7, 2024
It’s been nearly four years since Fortnite was removed from Google Play, and the removal coincided with Epic Games’ efforts to break Apple and Google’s dominance in the mobile app space. Epic Games is still in a legal battle with Apple over various issues similar to Google’s lawsuit, but it’s not yet clear what will happen with some of these issues.
This is another big win for Epic, as Google aims to unlock the means to run the Epic Games Store and its apps on mobile devices. We have big goals for Epic Games Store Mobile for 2025, and stay tuned for more updates on this topic as news breaks.
