An important cornerstone of a digital empire has been severely damaged when a federal court jury determined that Google’s Android app store has been shielded from competition by anticompetitive measures that have harmed smartphone users and software developers.
After four weeks of trial focused on a profitable payment structure within Google’s Play Store, the jury arrived to a unanimous decision on Monday after just three hours of deliberation. Apps for devices running Google’s Android operating system are mostly downloaded and installed via the store by hundreds of millions of users worldwide.
Three years ago, Epic Games, the company behind the well-known video game Fortnite, sued Google, claiming that the internet search engine giant had been misusing its authority to keep its Play Store free from rivals, thus safeguarding a billion-dollar profit margin. Google takes a commission on digital transactions made within apps, similar to what Apple does with its iPhone app store (15–30%).
Epic filed a similar lawsuit against the iPhone app store, but Apple won. However, the decision made by the federal judge during that trial in 2021 is being appealed to the United States Supreme Court.
Source (CNBC)
