Epic Games wins antitrust dispute against Google's Play Store monopoly!
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Epic Games beats Google in legal battle of antitrust!
The Fortnite publisher has accused Google of taking action to choke competitors and charging ridiculously high fees of up to 30 percent to app developers. With that, the jurors have decided in favor of Epic Games on all counts based on the court filing. The court will also start working on the remedies to be used this coming January 2024.
The decision shows a significant defeat for Google, which co-owns one of the biggest app stores globally with Apple. In the event that the decision is upheld, developers may have more control over the distribution and revenue-generating strategies for their programs.
Meanwhile, Google also mentioned attempting to appeal with the ruling. Its Vice President of Government Affairs and Public Policy at Google, Wilson White says that they will continue to defend the Android business model and remain devoted to their users, partners, and the bigger Android ecosystem.
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| The court ruling |
On the other hand, Epic's CEO Tim Sweeny cheered on its social media page X and called out the "Google Play monopoly".
Victory over Google!, After four weeks of detailed court testimony, the California jury found against the Google Play monopoly on all counts", says Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney on its X (Twitter).
Among the claims made by Epic was that Google unlawfully linked its Play Store and billing service, requiring developers to use both in order for their apps to be listed in the store.
Google may also be forced to provide Android-powered devices access to additional app stores, despite the potential of losing out on money from in-app sales.
Finally. Epic Games website noted that today's judgment proves that Google's app store practices are illegal and they abuse their monopoly to extract exorbitant fees, stifle competition, and reduce innovation".
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Sources: Epic Games, via: Reuters
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