Epic Games, the developer behind the popular game Fortnite, has launched a new antitrust lawsuit against Google and Samsung, claiming the two companies are colluding to prevent third-party app stores from operating on Samsung devices.
The lawsuit comes four years after Epic initially took legal action against Google, stating that the tech giant had an illegal monopoly over app distribution on Android. In December 2023, Epic the case when a jury ruled that Google had violated antitrust laws. Following this win, Epic has now shifted its focus to Samsung, alleging that the company’s “Auto Blocker” feature on new devices is designed to restrict users from installing apps outside of authorised sources.
The “Auto Blocker,” which is enabled by default on recent Samsung smartphones, prevents users from downloading apps unless they originate from Google’s Play Store or Samsung’s Galaxy Store. Epic claims this system creates a barrier for any rival app store, as there is no clear process for these alternative stores to gain “authorised” status. This effectively hampers competition and affects the app ecosystem.
Epic’s original lawsuits against Google and Apple were sparked by its frustrations with the 30% commission both companies charged developers for app sales and in-app purchases. In August 2020, Epic introduced a direct payment system in Fortnite, which allowed users to buy in-game currency at a lower price. This led to Fortnite being removed from both the Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store, triggering Epic’s legal actions.
Since then, Epic has been working towards establishing its own mobile app store. On August 16, 2024, the company launched the Epic Games Store for Android users globally and in the European Union, where regulations forced Apple to allow alternative app stores.
Epic claims that downloading a third-party app store on a Samsung phone now requires navigating a complex 21-step process, making it more likely that users will give up before finishing. We attempted to access Epic Games’ newsroom page regarding the lawsuit, but it returned a 404 error at the time of this article’s publication.
