Judge gives Google one week to fix "anticompetitive" app store download in Google Play

Google has been granted one week by US District Judge James Donato to rectify issues with its anticompetitive behavior in the Google Play Store. The judge reviewed the process for accessing third-party app stores and found that Google added unnecessary anticompetitive friction. Despite Epic and Google currently being in a partnership agreement, the two remain on opposing sides of the US antitrust case.

Google lost the case in 2023 and has been working on implementing remedies. One of the court's key elements is requiring Google to include third-party app stores in the Play Store, enabling users to easily obtain apps from non-Google sources. Aptoide Games is the first such app store to be included. However, Google attempted to avoid this outcome by settling with Epic to keep third-party app stores out.

Judge Donato was not satisfied with Google's implementation, stating that it was not sufficient during a Thursday hearing.