Epic Games has achieved a significant legal victory in its antitrust case against Google, with a jury ruling in favor of Epic’s claims that the Play app store operates as an illegal monopoly. This decision could potentially transform the app store landscape and reshape the economics for developers.
After more than a month of hearings, the jury found Epic’s case compelling, aligning with allegations that Google engaged in practices to suppress competition and impose excessively high fees—up to 30 percent—on app developers. The court will convene in January to discuss potential remedies following this landmark ruling.
This outcome represents a major setback for Google, a key player in the global app distribution market alongside Apple. Should the ruling stand, it might empower developers to exert more control over the distribution and monetization of their applications.
In response, Google announced plans to appeal the verdict. Wilson White, Google’s vice president of government affairs and public policy, stated, “We will continue to defend the Android business model and remain deeply committed to our users, partners, and the broader Android ecosystem.”
Epic’s CEO, Tim Sweeney, expressed enthusiasm for the jury’s decision, condemning the Google Play monopoly on the social media platform X.
Victory over Google! After 4 weeks of detailed court testimony, the California jury found against the Google Play monopoly on all counts. The Court’s work on remedies will start in January. Thanks for everyone’s support and faith! Free Fortnite! https://t.co/ITm4YBHCus
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) December 12, 2023
The jury began deliberations shortly after closing arguments were made by attorneys from both companies on Monday. The judge instructed them to reach a unanimous decision.
Epic’s lawsuit accused Google of illegally tying its Play store to its billing service, thereby forcing developers to utilize both in order to have their apps listed on the store.
Despite the Play store contributing less to Google’s overall revenue compared to its lucrative search business, it remains a pivotal entry point to a vast number of mobile devices worldwide.
If the ruling is upheld, Google may be required to permit additional app stores on Android devices, significantly impacting its revenue from in-app purchase fees.
Epic released a statement asserting that the verdict demonstrates that Google’s practices are illegal, enabling them to extract inflated fees and hinder competition while stifling innovation.
Allegations of Misconduct
“The trial has illuminated how Google has systematically undermined competition,” stated Gary Bornstein, an Epic attorney, emphasizing that Google “systematically blocks” alternative app stores on its platform.
Notably, the trial included claims that Google employed a system to delete internal messages and texts to obscure evidence of its anti-competitive behavior. Epic’s legal team suggested that jurors could infer that the deleted messages were likely unfavorable to Google.
Google has consistently denied any illegal activities, maintaining that it competes vigorously with Apple’s App Store on aspects such as price and security. Jonathan Kravis, representing Google, argued that the company is focused on retaining its substantial user base and has adjusted its fee structure to remain competitive.
“This is not the behavior of a monopolist,” he remarked during his closing argument.
Before the trial commenced, Google resolved related issues with the dating application Match. Additionally, it settled other antitrust claims from U.S. states and consumers under undisclosed terms.
Epic previously filed a similar antitrust suit against Apple in 2020 but faced a largely unfavorable ruling in September 2021. Currently, Epic is appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court to revisit significant claims from the Apple case, while Apple is contesting aspects of the ruling that would necessitate changes to its App Store policies.
In a twist of irony, the attorney for Epic disclosed that the company had previously violated Play store regulations by bypassing Google’s billing systems for in-app purchases, which led to Google banning Fortnite and triggered the subsequent lawsuit.
© Thomson Reuters 2023
