In a significant legal victory, Epic Games has won its appeal against Google, with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirming a 2023 unanimous jury verdict that found Google’s app store and payments system to be illegal monopolies. Epic CEO Tim Sweeney celebrated the news, tweeting, “Total victory in the Epic v Google appeal!”
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A three-judge panel upheld the lower court’s decision, and it appears they have also reactivated a previously paused permanent injunction. This injunction, originally issued by Judge James Donato, is designed to break open Android’s ecosystem to competition. While Google has confirmed it will appeal the decision again, likely to the Supreme Court, the injunction may take effect during this process.
The consequences of the permanent injunction extend far beyond Epic Games and its flagship title, Fortnite. The ruling could force Google to open its Android ecosystem to genuine competition for three years. This includes mandating that Google:
- Distribute rival app stores within the Google Play Store itself.
- Give competing app stores access to the full catalogue of Google Play apps.
- Cease a variety of anticompetitive practices, such as requiring apps to exclusively use Google Play Billing.
In response, Google’s global head of regulatory affairs, Lee-Anne Mulholland, stated that the company’s top priority remains protecting its users and partners while appealing the decision. She warned that the ruling could “significantly harm user safety, limit choice, and undermine the innovation that has always been central to the Android ecosystem.”
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The court’s decision also highlighted key differences between Epic’s successful case against Google and its largely unsuccessful suit against Apple. The Ninth Circuit panel, led by Judge M. Margaret McKeown, rejected the idea that the two cases were the same. The court noted that while Apple’s iOS operates as a “walled garden,” Google licenses its Android operating system to numerous manufacturers like Samsung and Motorola, creating a distinct commercial reality.
The opinion used a compelling analogy, comparing overlapping markets like fast-food hamburgers (McDonald’s, Wendy’s) and chicken sandwiches (McDonald’s, Chick-fil-A). The court concluded that while Google and Apple may compete for mobile gaming downloads overall, they do not compete within the specific markets of “Android-only app distribution” and “in-app billing.” It was within these two distinct markets that a jury unanimously found Google to have an illegal monopoly.
This legal battle began in 2020 when Epic intentionally used Fortnite as a tool to challenge the app store monopolies of both Google and Apple. The jury in the Google case was presented with damning evidence, including secret revenue-sharing deals and internal emails from Google executives expressing fear of competition from Epic. Epic’s victory today affirms that Google’s app store practices went beyond fair competition, paving the way for a more open and competitive Android ecosystem.
