The trial of Epic Games vs Google has been dragging on for years now, with the latest court case ending with the 2023 verdict not being overturned and, according to Tim Sweeney, the Epic Games Store on its way to the Google Play Store.
In 2023, the jury verdict in the Epic Games vs Google case ruled that Google had an “illegal monopoly” with its practices over Android with the Play Store and its billing practices. Through that case, many of Google’s deals were deemed as anticompetitive, leading to the verdict.
Google, of course, appealed the case to a higher court, but has now lost in that appeal.
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals will not overturn the verdict, with Judge M. Margaret McKeown citing “longstanding principles of trial procedure, antitrust, and injunctive remedies.”
Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney immediately took to social media, calling the verdict a “total victory” for Epic. He goes on to add that this verdict will allow the Epic Games Store to be distributed via the Google Play Store rather than requiring users to sideload the game-focused app store.
It’s unclear if Google has any right at this point to stop Epic from putting its store on the Play Store while waiting on this next appeal, but Sweeney’s post certainly implies Google cannot stop that debut any longer.
Speaking to The Verge, Google says it will appeal the decision yet again, which will bring the case to the US Supreme Court. The company says:
This decision will significantly harm user safety, limit choice, and undermine the innovation that has always been central to the Android ecosystem. Our top priority remains protecting our users, developers and partners, and maintaining a secure platform as we continue our appeal.
In the verdict, the court notes that “[Google’s] own expert conceded that Google would be able to meet these difficulties with the same technological criteria it uses for other third-party software applications already on the Play Store,” further adding that the “injunction only compels that Google treat those software products the same way that it treats other products already offered on the platform.”
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