Maya Robertson
Epic Games’ VP of public policy, Corie Wright, has voiced dissatisfaction with Google’s $700 million antitrust settlement, stating that it provides inadequate relief for both consumers and developers.
“After originally seeking $10.5 billion in antitrust damages identified as Google’s unjustly collected fees, the States Attorneys General settled for a $700 million payout,” Corie Wright emphasized.
The settlement, reached in response to an antitrust case filed by all 50 US states over alleged market dominance, includes changes to Google’s Play Store, such as allowing publishers to promote their web stores without direct links and enabling the use of alternate billing systems. However, Google will continue to levy a platform fee.
Despite these concessions, Epic Games, which recently won its own case against Google, argues that the punitive measures against Google are limited. Wright highlights that the settlement does not address the core issues of Google’s “unlawful and anticompetitive behavior,” emphasizing the continuation of high fees for digital goods and restrictions on app distribution for developers.
“The States’ settlement does not address the core of Google’s unlawful and anticompetitive behavior. In the next phase of the case, Epic will seek meaningful remedies to truly open up the Android ecosystem so consumers and developers will genuinely benefit from the competition that U.S. antitrust laws were designed to promote,” said Write in a blog post.
Epic Games plans to seek more substantial remedies in the ongoing legal battle to foster genuine competition in the Android ecosystem.
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