Google and Epic Games have reached a settlement that would bring their years-long court battle to a close. The companies have filed a proposal in the federal court of San Francisco, asking US District Judge James Donato to approve a modified version of the order he originally imposed on Google when it lost the case. "Together with Epic Games we have filed a proposed set of changes to Android and Google Play that focus on expanding developer choice and flexibility, lowering fees, and encouraging more competition all while keeping users safe," said Sameer Samat, the President of Android Ecosystem at Google, on X.
Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney praised the proposal for "genuinely [doubling] down on Android's original vision as an open platform to streamline competing store installs globally, reduce service fees for developers on Google Play and enable third-party in-app and web payments." Epic Games sued Google in 2020, accusing it of an illegal monopoly on app distribution and in-app billing services for Android devices.
The court sided with Epic Games in late 2023, and Google lost its appeal in July this year. Google tried to ask the Supreme Court to block the injunction Donato handed down, which required the company to make major changes to the Play Store, while it appealed the case again. But the Supreme Court denied its request. That means Google will be prohibited from paying manufacturers and app developers to exclusively install and distribute on the Play Store, respectively. It will also be prohibited from forcing developers to only use its payment system, and it will have to allow third-party app stores to be installed on Android devices.
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Google will still have to follow most of Donato's orders under the proposal, but the companies made some modifications. To start with, they've worked out how to "allow developers and users to seamlessly use alternative payment mechanisms," both in-app and via external links, while adhering to Google's security and safety standards. They've also specified the maximum fees Google can charge for external payments, which are 9 percent or 20 percent, depending on the type of transaction. The companies have identified "reasonable, neutral criteria" that third-party stores would be required to meet, as well. Users will easily be able to download stores that meet those criteria so they can compete against the Play Store and each other around the world.
Samat said that the companies are meeting with Judge Donato on Thursday, and if he approves of the proposal, it "would resolve [the] litigations."