Google To Pay $700 Million Fine, Agrees To Foster Better Competition Within Play Store: Report

Alphabet-owned Google has agreed to pay $700 million and has committed to fostering increased competition within its Play Store app as part of an antitrust settlement in a San Francisco federal court involving US states and consumers, says a report by news agency Reuters. Google was quoted as saying in a statement that it will pay $630 million to a settlement fund for consumers and $70 million to a fund designated for states.

Wilson White, Google vice president for government affairs and public policy, in a statement said the settlement “builds on Android’s choice and flexibility, maintains strong security protections, and retains Google’s ability to compete with other (operating system) makers, and invest in the Android ecosystem for users and developers”, the report added.

The lead plaintiff, Utah, along with other states in the US, revealed the settlement in September, but the terms were confidential until Google’s trial with the maker of popular game “Fortnite”, Epic Games. A California federal jury recently concurred with Epic, finding certain aspects of Google’s app business to be anticompetitive.

Accused of overcharging consumers via unlawful restrictions on app distribution and imposing unnecessary fees for in-app transactions on Android devices, Google awaits final approval from a judge for the settlement.

Epic next year will ask the judge hearing both cases, US District Judge James Donato, to issue an order that could require the tech giant to make changes to its Play store.

Affirmative responses were given to all posed questions, asserting that Google holds monopoly power in both the Android app distribution and in-app billing services markets. The determination included findings of anticompetitive actions by Google in these markets, recognizing harm inflicted upon Epic. Additionally, the decision identified an illicit connection between Google’s Google Play app store and Google Play Billing payment services, deeming distribution agreements, Project Hug deals with game developers, and dealings with OEMs as anticompetitive.

Meanwhile, in a landmark antitrust trial, Epic Games, the creator of Fortnite, recently emerged victorious over Google, challenging the tech giant’s Play app store’s alleged illegal monopoly practices. The verdict, handed down by jurors who found in favour of Epic on all counts, may have far-reaching implications for the entire app store economy. The trial, spanning over a month, accused Google of stifling competition and imposing exorbitant fees of up to 30 per cent on app developers. The court, set to address remedies in January, could potentially reshape the app distribution landscape.

This has dealt a significant blow to Google alongside Apple, another tech giant, which operates one of the largest app stores, globally.