A U.S. federal judge in California has ruled that Google must revamp its mobile application business, mandating the opening of its Android operating system to competing app stores. This decision is aimed at providing users with more options for downloading apps and making payments.
The ruling stems from a 2020 antitrust lawsuit filed by Epic Games, the developer of "Fortnite," against Google. Last December, a jury backed Epic's claims, declaring Google's app store practices to be an illegal monopoly.
Judge James Donato's recent decision outlines that over the next three years, Google cannot enforce the use of Google Pay exclusively for apps on Google Play. It must also allow users to download third-party app stores compatible with Android and prevent paying manufacturers to pre-install Google Play, or offer developers incentives for exclusive or priority release on Google Play.
Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney noted that this ruling opens the door for Epic's game store and other app stores to join Google Play next year. He encouraged the industry to seize this three-year window to foster a competitive Android ecosystem that Google cannot easily suppress.
Following the ruling, Alphabet's (GOOGL, Financial) shares fell 2.5% to $164.39. Google announced plans to appeal the decision and request a stay on its enforcement, which is set to take effect on November 1.
Google has faced several antitrust lawsuits in the U.S. recently. In August, a federal court in Washington supported the U.S. Department of Justice's claims that Google unlawfully maintained its monopoly as the default search engine. Additionally, a Virginia federal court recently began hearing a case accusing Google of monopolizing the advertising technology market.
