Google has requested a California federal judge to pause an injunction that would open its Play Store to increased competition. The injunction, issued by U.S. District Judge James Donato on October 7, is set to take effect on November 1 and stems from a legal battle with Epic Games, the creator of "Fortnite." Epic Games successfully convinced a federal jury that Google was monopolizing app distribution and payment methods on Android devices, violating antitrust laws.
The judge's order mandates several significant changes to Google's Play Store policies. It requires Google to allow users to download apps from third-party platforms or app stores on Android devices and prohibits Google from blocking the use of competing in-app payment systems. Additionally, Google can no longer pay device manufacturers to preinstall its Play Store nor share revenue generated from the store with other app distributors. These changes aim to reduce Google’s control over the Android ecosystem, which the court found to be unfairly limiting competition.
Google argues that the injunction would cause substantial harm to its business and raise serious security, privacy, and safety concerns within the Android ecosystem. As a result, the company has filed a request to stay the order while it appeals. If Judge Donato denies Google’s request, the tech giant plans to escalate the matter to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
On Thursday, Google officially filed its notice of appeal with the 9th Circuit, which will eventually rule on the company’s challenge to the antitrust verdict and the judge's injunction.