Google lost an antitrust case Monday when a U.S. federal jury ruled in favor of Epic Games. The video-game maker had accused the search giant of suppressing competition in the Android app market to secure billions of dollars in profits from its Play Store.
The blow to Google in this case came as a possible warning as it faces other legal challenges to its search dominance and ad-tech business.
Epic thanked the court and the jury "for their historic decision" in a blog post late Monday.
The video-game maker brought on the lawsuit in 2020, alleging that Google used its dominant position to squeeze excess profits from app developers.
The San Francisco jury deliberated for less than four hours before reaching a unanimous verdict, according to several media sources.
The point being debated was whether Google prevented rivals to its Play Store and payment services from flourishing on Android devices. Epic’s lawsuit alleged Google abused power by charging excessive fees.
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Epic said Google looked to gain dominance in the app business, claiming that more than 95% of apps are distributed through the Play Store on Android.
Google imposes a 30% tax on developers. Epic says it prevents viable competitors from emerging to offer better deals.
The video-game maker wrote in the blog post that Google's executives acknowledged in court their offer of a 26% rate on third-party payment options is a fake choice for developers.
Google made an operating profit of $12 billion on its Play Store in 2021, and Epic wanted to use an alternative billing process in the Play Store that avoids Google’s fees, according to the Financial Times.
Earlier this month, Google Vice President of Government Affairs and Public Policy Wilson White wrote in a blog post that Epic had sued "Apple and lost twice," calling the company's claims "baseless."
In a related case against Apple in 2021, Epic lost when a California judge concluded the tech giant did not break the law by imposing rules that block rival stores and payment methods on its devices.
That's not how the jury in Google's case saw it.
The biggest difference in the two cases, as FT points out, is that Google doesn't control most of the hardware in which those apps sit. Apple does.
Google plans to appeal the verdict.