Technology
Tuesday, December 19th, 2023 3:08 pm EDT
Key Points
- Antitrust Settlement Amount: Google has agreed to pay $700 million as part of an antitrust settlement with U.S. states and consumers. The settlement allocates $630 million to a fund for consumers and $70 million to a fund for states, pending final approval by a judge.
- Consumer Compensation and Allegations: Eligible consumers are set to receive a minimum of $2, with potential additional payments based on their spending on Google Play between August 16, 2016, and September 30, 2023. Google faced accusations of overcharging consumers through unlawful restrictions on app distribution on Android devices and imposing unnecessary fees for in-app transactions. Google did not admit wrongdoing.
- Competition Measures and Android Ecosystem: As part of the settlement, Google commits to enhancing competition in its Play app store. The company emphasizes that the settlement builds on Android’s choice and flexibility, maintains strong security protections, and allows Google to compete with other operating system makers. Google plans to expand the ability of app and game developers to offer consumers alternative billing options for in-app purchases alongside Play’s billing system. Additionally, Google will simplify users’ ability to download apps directly from developers. The settlement aims to provide significant, meaningful, and long-lasting relief for consumers, with no other U.S. antitrust enforcer having secured remedies of this magnitude from Google or another major digital platform.
Alphabet’s Google has reached an antitrust settlement with U.S. states and consumers, agreeing to pay $700 million and introducing measures to enhance competition in its Play app store. The settlement, subject to final approval by a judge, includes $630 million for a settlement fund for consumers and $70 million for a fund used by states. Eligible consumers are expected to receive at least $2, with potential additional payments based on their spending on Google Play from August 16, 2016, to September 30, 2023. All 50 states, along with the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, have joined the settlement.
Google was accused of overcharging consumers through unlawful restrictions on app distribution on Android devices and unnecessary fees for in-app transactions. The company did not admit wrongdoing, but the settlement builds on Android’s choice and flexibility, maintains strong security protections, and allows Google to compete with other operating system makers, according to Wilson White, Google’s Vice President for Government Affairs and Public Policy.
The settlement comes after a California federal jury, in a trial with “Fortnite” maker Epic Games, found that parts of Google’s app business were anticompetitive. Google plans to expand the ability of app and game developers to provide consumers with an alternative billing option for in-app purchases alongside Play’s billing system. It has piloted “choice billing” in the U.S. for over a year. As part of the settlement, Google will simplify users’ ability to download apps directly from developers.
Lawyers for the states described the settlement terms as offering significant, meaningful, and long-lasting relief for consumers nationwide, noting that no other U.S. antitrust enforcer has secured remedies of this magnitude from Google or another major digital platform. Epic, which sought an injunction but not monetary damages, is expected to propose potential changes to Google’s Play store in 2024. Google faces additional lawsuits challenging its search and digital advertising practices, denying any wrongdoing in those cases.
For the full original article on CNBC, please click here: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/12/19/google-to-pay-700-million-to-us-consumers-states-in-play-store-settlement.html
