U.S. District Judge James Donato ordered Google to open an Android app store to encourage the existence of competing app stores. This is all in the aftermath of a lawsuit filed by Epic Games, creators of video games such as: fortnite and gears of waraccused Google of operating an illegal monopoly through restrictive practices on the Google Play Store.
Epic accused Google of implementing a variety of restrictive practices, including blocking alternative app stores, forcing the use of payment systems, and imposing high fees, all of which maintain its dominance in app distribution. It was intended to. The jury agreed, finding that Google had an illegal monopoly in both the Android app distribution market and the in-app purchase services market.
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The judge’s ruling requires Google to allow competing third-party app stores to operate within its platform, giving them access to the entire catalog of apps available on Google Play.
For the next three years, Google won’t be able to do much of what paid companies do: release apps exclusively on Google Play before being published to other app stores. Google won’t be able to pay companies that don’t compete with Google. You can’t pay companies to pre-install Google Play on new devices. You can’t require app makers to use Google Pay Billing. Google will now have to allow competing app stores access to Google Play’s app catalog. Finally, Google should start carrying third-party Android app stores in the Google Play app store.
This ruling changes the basis of how digital app stores function to promote competition. Judge Donato noted that even other big tech companies like Amazon have a very difficult time competing with Google’s app store ecosystem, and said the playing field needs to be leveled. The new ruling may finally allow other app stores to compete.
While Epic Games celebrates this ruling as a huge victory, Google will likely appeal. CEO Tim Sweeney said the ruling opens the door to alternatives to Google’s steep 30% cut in app profits.
All of this comes as Google is embroiled in another monopoly case, with the Department of Justice currently proposing a series of sanctions against Google to prevent it from dominating the search engine market any further. are. Proposals include limiting the company’s ability to track data and ending exclusive deals with companies like Apple and Samsung.
