Google will allow rival app stores on Android starting July 22 — the result of a court order, not a change in policy.
Google and Epic Games withdrew their proposed settlement this week after the court signaled it would not approve the deal. That leaves a permanent injunction from October 2024 in full effect, requiring Google to open Android to third-party app marketplaces. The stores will be accessible through the Google Play Store itself, and competing marketplaces will pay Google a $5,000 annual fee to participate. Google will also continue collecting its service fee on transactions made through those alternative stores.
The injunction stems from Epic's antitrust lawsuit, in which a jury found Google had abused its monopoly over Android app distribution — a starkly different outcome than Epic's parallel suit against Apple, which largely went in Apple's favor. Apple is still fighting its own Epic case, expected to be heard in late 2026 or early 2027, and already faces EU pressure under the Digital Markets Act to support alternative marketplaces.
Google's statement that withdrawal lets it "deliver greater app store choice, lower prices, and more opportunities" is doing a lot of work — this is court-ordered compliance dressed up as a strategic pivot.