Attorney General Letitia James, along with a coalition of 53 attorneys general, reached a landmark $700 million settlement with Google LLC. The agreement addresses Google’s monopolistic practices in its app stores that have led to increased costs for consumers and app developers.
The lawsuit, co-led by Attorney General James, accused Google of maintaining an illegal monopoly over the distribution of mobile apps and in-app payment processing on Android devices. Google’s dominance allowed the company to charge up to 30% on apps and in-app purchases, significantly inflating costs for consumers.
“No company, no matter how large or powerful, can corner a market and use its influence to overcharge consumers and stifle competition,” Attorney General James said. Stated. “For too long, Google has abused its market share to unfairly jack up prices and prevent developers from selling their products in other app stores.”
Under the terms of the settlement, Google will pay $630 million in restitution to consumers affected by Google’s anticompetitive conduct between August 2016 and September 2023. Consumers can also choose to receive automatic payments via PayPal or Venmo, or by check or ACH transfer. The rest of his $70 million covers sovereignty claims by states.
As part of our efforts to stop anti-competitive behavior, Google is required to make significant changes to its operations.
These changes include the freedom for developers to choose in-app billing systems other than Google Play Billing and to lower prices for their apps and in-app products through alternative billing systems. Developers will be able to direct consumers to these non-Google billing options within their apps.
The settlement also provides that Google cannot enforce exclusivity agreements that position the Google Play Store as the only app store preloaded on devices. Google is also expected to ease the restrictions and warnings associated with downloading these third-party apps, while making it easier to install and update third-party apps from sources other than the Google Play Store. Tech giants also need the flexibility to allow developers to release their apps to different app stores at the same time.
An independent monitor will monitor Google’s compliance with these terms for five years and ensure an end to Google’s monopolistic practices.
The settlement follows a unanimous jury verdict against Google for violating federal antitrust laws in a lawsuit brought by Epic Games and Match.