Epic Games Lawsuit Against Samsung and Google for Blocking Third-Party Apps

Epic Games has resumed its legal battles, this time taking aim at Samsung and Google. The renowned video game developer accuses these tech giants of engaging in anti-competitive practices that hinder competition within the Android ecosystem.

Epic Games asserts that Samsung and Google conspired to obstruct third-party app stores on Samsung devices through a feature known as “Auto Blocker.”This feature allegedly restricts users from installing applications from sources other than Google Play Store and Samsung Galaxy Store.

Tim Sweeney, the CEO of Epic Games, commented to reporters:

“This is a major global fight, which is ultimately for the right of consumers to get all the benefits of competition and choose freely who they want to do business with.”

The lawsuit indicates that the Auto Blocker feature began as an opt-in option but later complicated the process for users wishing to download apps from third-party stores. Epic argues that this change forces users to navigate through a cumbersome 21-step process to install alternative applications, effectively pushing them towards Google and Samsung’s app stores.

This behavior directly contradicts Epic’s previous lawsuit against Google. In December 2023, a jury unanimously ruled in favor of Epic Games in its antitrust case against Google, citing illegal monopolistic control over the Android app market through various anti-competitive tactics. The jury determined that Google’s dominance of the Play Store and its billing services suppressed competition, ultimately driving up costs for both consumers and developers.

Epic claims the Auto Blocker feature became a default setting in July 2024, undermining the jury’s December ruling against Google’s anti-competitive practices.

Epic Games has been actively challenging the monopolistic behaviors of both Apple and Google in the mobile app marketplace. The company has also expressed intentions to raise these concerns with regulators in the European Union, where Big Tech faces increasing scrutiny.

via Reuters, Economic Times

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