Fortnite maker wins anti-monopoly lawsuit against Google

‘We will continue to defend the Android business model,’ Google says

Fortnite maker Epic Games has won an antitrust lawsuit over tech giant Google alleging that the Play app store operated as an illegal monopoly.

The lawsuit, filed about three years ago, alleged that Alphabet’s Google was attempting to quash competitors and charge high fees of up to 30 per cent to app developers.

It also accused Google of illegally tying together its Play Store and billing service, forcing developers to use both to have their apps featured in the store.

Epic Games lawyer Gary Bornstein earlier told jurors that Google “systematically blocks” alternative app stores on its Play store.

Following deliberation for over three hours, the nine-member jury ruled in favour of Epic Games in the month-long trial which is the latest in the nearly three year legal battle.

The latest ruling, if upheld, can give developers more control over how the apps they develop are distributed, and give them more share of the profits from in-app purchases.

“Victory over Google! After 4 weeks of detailed court testimony, the California jury found against the Google Play monopoly on all counts,” Tim Sweeney, chief of Epic Games, wrote on X.

The verdict “proves that Google’s app store practices are illegal and they abuse their monopoly to extract exorbitant fees, stifle competition and reduce innovation”, Epic Games said in a statement on its website.

Google said it would appeal the court’s decision.

“We will continue to defend the Android business model and remain deeply committed to our users, partners, and the broader Android ecosystem,” Wilson White, vice president of government affairs and public policy at Google, told Reuters.

Google lawyers argued that the company competed intensely on “price, quality, and security” against Apple’s App Store, which it claimed is more popular in the US.

“This is not the behavior of a monopolist,” a lawyer for Google, Jonathan Kravis told jurors.

Epic Games said in a blog post that the latest verdict was “a win for all app developers and consumers around the world,” and “proved that Google’s app store practices are illegal and they abuse their monopoly to extract exorbitant fees, stifle competition and reduce innovation.”

Epic had earlier launched a similar lawsuit against Apple in 2020 but a US judge ruled in favour of Apple.

The evidence presented in the latest case “demonstrates the urgent need for legislation and regulations that address Apple and Google strangleholds over smartphones”, Epic said in a statement.

It remains to be seen what appropriate remedies Judge James Donato will decide for the case in January.