Google responded to the extensive list of remedies proposed by Epic Games. The company called the demands unjustified, arguing that they would “make it nearly impossible for Google to compete.”
Recall that Epic Games won a lawsuit against Google in December, when the jury unanimously ruled that Google created an illegal monopoly in the market for Android application distribution and in-app billing services.
Last month, Epic proposed a list of remedies, asking (among others) Google to:
- Provide third-party app stores with access to the Play Store’s catalog of apps and games for six years;
- Allow consumers and developers to choose how to make and offer in-app purchases, without fees and restrictions;
- Allow consumers to download apps outside of the Play Store;
- Allow developers to manage their own stores (Epic should be able to publish the EGS on Android “without delays and barriers”);
- Create a compliance committee, with a compliance officer who reports to the court annually whether Google complies with the injunction.
Google’s response to Epic Games
In a new paper, Google has asked the court not to impose such changes, stating that Epic Games’ proposed remedies are not an injunction against violations, but rather a way to “create a new global regulatory regime.” The company added that the Fortnite maker is also “seeking remedies to which it is not entitled.”
“Overall, Epic’s proposed remedies have the cumulative effect of prevent Google from competing to the detriment of consumers, developers, OEMs, and carriers across the Android ecosystem and beyond,” the document reads.
“Not only is their proposal good beyond the scope of the recent verdict of the US trial – which we will challenge – but it is also useless because of the agreement we reached last year with the state attorneys general of all the states and several territories,” Wilson White, vice president of Google, told TechCrunch for government affairs and public policy.
The final decision on the matter will be made by Judge James Donato. The new hearing in the case is scheduled for May 23.
