A US federal court on Thursday ordered Google to make its Android operating system open to competing app stores, after the internet giant lost an appeal in an antitrust suit brought by Fortnite creator Epic Games.
US Ninth Circuit Court Judge Margaret McKeown said in an opinion that a panel of justices decided to uphold the original verdict because the initial ruling's parameters were "supported by the record and the nature of the market."
Epic chief executive Tim Sweeney fired off a post on X declaring: "Total victory in the Epic v Google appeal!"
Google will proceed with its appeal of the December 2023 ruling, the following court being the US Supreme Court, based on the company's worldwide head of regulatory affairs Lee-Anne Mulholland.
"This decision will significantly harm user safety, limit choice, and undermine the innovation that has always been central to the Android ecosystem," Mulholland said in response to an AFP inquiry.
"Our top priority remains protecting our users, developers and partners, and maintaining a secure platform as we continue our appeal."
The EFF had argued that the original judge's ruling is poised to even out the playing field in the Android operating system for competing app stores, some of which have improved vetting and curation policies.
"Google and other tech giants offer 'feudal security' in which users must depend on the whims of a monopolist to guarantee their safety," the EFF said in an online post.
The order from the judge came after Google lost an antitrust lawsuit filed by Epic, in which a California jury ruled Google has unlawful monopoly power using its Android Play Store.
Epic has fought a similar court battle with Apple over its App Store.
Soon after Fortnite debuted on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, Epic inserted undercover code in the game's software such that players would be able to circumvent the tech giants' payment-processing networks, thus evading commissions of up to 30 percent, the court said.
Epic referred to the evasion plan as "Project Liberty" as a bit of protest against strict control over the principal stores for smartphone digital content.
Fortnite came back to Apple's App Store in the US in May after being sidelined for years because of a legal fight with the iPhone manufacturer.
The North Carolina company Epic has been battling Apple in US courts since 2021, when Fortnite was removed from the App Store for violating what Apple asserted was an effort to circumvent the iPhone maker's payment system.
Apple is appealing elements of the decision of that case even though a judge decided the App Store isn't a monopoly.
