Google has won a small but important victory in its legal battle with Epic Games. Judge James Donato has suspended the originally scheduled November 1st entry into force of his own decision to change the rules of the Google Play app store – an administrative stay is granted for all but one part of his decision.
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That means Google won’t have to open its Android app store until it appeals the judge’s ruling—or at all. In December, a jury unanimously ruled that the Play Store was an illegal monopoly, and Google is now also appealing that verdict. Technically, the stay gives the company just a little time for the appellate court to grant Google a longer stay while it appeals the decision, but Judge Donato said he suspects the appellate court will agree to grant Google that lengthy stay.
Only one part of his decision remains in effect: from November 1, 2024 to November 1, 2027, the company is ordered not to enter into deals with carriers or device manufacturers unless those deals allow for the installation of alternative app stores on devices in exchange for money, revenue share or benefits. If the decision had remained in full force, developers would have had the opportunity to refuse to use the Google payment system in mobile applications as early as November 1, and after another eight months, clients of alternative application stores would have appeared in the Play Store.
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Judge Donato initially gave Google less than a month to begin the process of opening up its ecosystem, but the company said it would need the same 90 days that Apple — which is the plaintiff in both cases, Epic Games, according to the search giant, was given in a similar decision. I didn’t mind that. If not for the delay, the decision would have had almost immediate consequences for consumers: Microsoft, for example, promised that games could be purchased and played directly from the Xbox app on Android; and Epic Games promised that its app store will appear on Google Play next year. Now this may happen only in a few years.
«We are pleased with the District Court’s decision to temporarily stay the enforcement of the dangerous remedies sought by Epic until the Court of Appeals considers our motion to further stay the remedies pending the appeal hearing. These remedies pose a threat to Google Play’s ability to provide a safe and secure experience, and we look forward to standing up for the 100 million US Android users, over 500,000 US developers, and the thousands of partners who make money on our platforms.” Google solution.
«Today, the court made it clear that Google’s appeal is without merit and rejected their request to delay the process of opening Android devices to competitors while the appeal is pending. Google continues to use intimidation and unfounded security threats to assert its control over Android devices and continue to receive exorbitant fees. “The stay of the injunction is merely a procedural step to allow the Ninth Circuit [Court of Appeals] to rule on Google’s motion to stay the injunction pending appeal,” Epic Games said.