Supreme Court Denies Google’s Bid to Pause App Store Changes (2)

Alphabet Inc.’s Google lost a US Supreme Court bid to pause major changes to its Google Play app store in an antitrust case filed by Fortnite-maker Epic Games Inc.

The Supreme Court, without explanation, denied Google’s request to temporarily put part of a lower court ruling on hold. The company sought to block a requirement that it allow rival app stores access to its app library and bar it from blocking downloads of competitors in Google Play.

The company also sought to pause the ability of app developers to offer links to cheaper payment options. Google says the changes will “significantly harm user safety” and undermine innovation for Android.

A Google spokesperson said the company is disappointed by the ruling and will continue to appeal.

The high court’s refusal to delay the changes however, could indicate that it won’t ultimately rule for the company.

Epic Chief Executive Officer Tim Sweeney praised the ruling in a post on X, saying developers can steer Google users outside their apps “without fees, scare screens, and friction.”

The part of the order from US District Judge James Donato in San Francisco allowing outside links is set to take effect Oct. 22. It was initially entered last year following a December 2023 trial where a jury sided with Epic on its claims that Alphabet set restrictive Google Play policies and engaged in anticompetitive conduct by paying phone manufacturers and popular app developers to exclusively use its app store.

The 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Donato’s ruling in July.

The case is Google v. Epic, 25a354.

(Updates with comment from Google and Epic’s CEO.)

To contact the reporters on this story:
Josh Sisco in San Francisco at jsisco6@bloomberg.net;
Greg Stohr in Washington at gstohr@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story:
Sara Forden at sforden@bloomberg.net

Elizabeth Wasserman, Peter Blumberg

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