Recently, Epic Games received a surprise win in trial against Google, with Judge James Donato showing a willingness to consider some of Epic’s major demands. Despite initial skepticism, it seems that the possibility of the Epic Games Store living inside Google Play Store and accessing every app within it is not completely off the table.
Judge Donato has ordered Google to calculate the costs associated with complying with Epic’s demands by June 24th. Specifically, Google will need to provide details on the technical work required and any economic costs involved in providing “Catalog Access” and “Library Porting” to competing app stores for a period of up to six years. Additionally, Google may also need to address the tech work and economic costs for distributing third-party app stores through the Google Play Store.
One of the major demands outlined by Epic includes Google giving other app stores access to the entire Google Play catalog of apps. This move could potentially open up new opportunities for competing app stores to reach a wider audience and offer a more diverse range of apps to users.
During an evidentiary hearing, Judge Donato expressed skepticism towards Google’s arguments against Epic’s proposed remedies, indicating a possible shift in the landscape of app distribution on Google Play Store. However, he also noted that some of Epic’s demands were deemed “open-ended and too vague,” suggesting that further clarification may be necessary.
Following its legal victory, Epic has been actively working on a version of its game store for Android, hinting at the company’s commitment to expanding its presence in the mobile app market. With ongoing developments and potential changes to Google’s app store policies, the future of app distribution on Android devices remains uncertain but full of possibilities.
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