Epic v. Google: Tech Titan Must Open Google Play Store to Rival Apps, Judge Rules

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Epic v. Google: Tech Titan Must Open Google Play Store to Rival Apps, Judge Rules

Epic v. Google: Tech Titan Must Open Google Play Store to Rival Apps, Judge Rules

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October 8, 2024

The ongoing Epic v. Google debacle continues to unfold. In the latest development, a judge has ruled that Google must open up the Google Play store to rival third-party applications for the next three years. This means that Google Play will be mandated to offer platforms like Epic Games to users worldwide.

Not only that but the tech titan must also give third-party app stores access to every application housed in Google Play – unless the developers themselves opt out of that mechanic.

Monumental Victory

Epic Games has taken Google to court and historically schooled the gargantuan tech firm. Recently, Judge Donato, who has been presiding over the case, decreed it that Google has eight months to piece together a system governed by a three-person technical committee.

This system will need to figure out how these new arrangements will work in the best interests of everyone involved.

Here’s the full list of changes that have surfaced as a result of these legal proceedings:

• Google must stop requiring Google Play Billing for apps distributed on the Google Play store
• Google must allow Android developers to offer other ways to pay within the Play Store
• Google must let Android developers link to ways to download outside of the Play Store
• Google must let developers arrange their own pricing structure irrespective of Play Billing
• Google must not share app revenue with ‘any person or entity that distributes Android apps’ or plans to launch their own app store
• Google must not offer developers money to launch their apps exclusively on the Play Store. Similarly, Google cannot offer money to developers to have them not launch on a rival platform.
• Google must not offer manufacturers incentives to pre-install the Play Store on their devices

This ruling also eradicates Google’s 30% ‘app tax’. Speaking on the proceedings, Judge Donato said:

We’re going to tear the barriers down, it’s just the way it’s going to happen.

Fast-forward to today, and those barriers have well and truly been decimated. Google’s monopoly on the Android application market has been irrevocably changed — but we’ll see what happens when the three-year window is up.

What do you think about the implications of this settlement? Let us know on the Insider Gaming forum.

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