Google and Epic Cancel Settlement; Third-Party App Stores Coming To Google Play (arstechnica.com)
- Reference: 0184470672
- News link: https://yro.slashdot.org/story/26/07/15/1738217/google-and-epic-cancel-settlement-third-party-app-stores-coming-to-google-play
- Source link: https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2026/07/third-party-app-stores-coming-to-google-play-next-week-as-epic-settlement-withdrawn/
> Big changes are coming to Android apps, but they're not the changes Google wanted. The settlement [1]between Google and Epic that aimed to put to rest the companies' long-running antitrust battle is being withdrawn, and that means [2]third-party app stores are coming to the Play Store . Google has confirmed that it will begin distributing rival app stores next week, setting the stage for competing platforms to take a bite out of Google's Android revenue stream. [...] Google and Epic were set to return to court on July 16 to argue in favor of the settlement. However, the writing may have been on the wall. In a recent expert analysis provided to the court, MIT economics professor Nancy Rose noted that the settlement was "unlikely to enable Google Play's potential competitors to overcome their long-standing network-effect disadvantage in a timely manner."
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> With settlement approval looking increasingly unlikely, Epic and Google agreed this week to call the whole thing off. Here's how Google Trust and Reputation Communications Lead Dan Jackson explains the company's decision: "We've agreed with Epic to withdraw our motion to modify the US Court's injunction rather than prolonging this process which creates uncertainty for the ecosystem. This allows us to focus on executing our recently announced global business model evolution to deliver greater app store choice, lower prices, and more opportunities for developers and users. We remain committed to maintaining Android's industry-leading security and fostering a competitive ecosystem where every app store and developer has the freedom to compete. In parallel, we continue to comply with the US Court's injunction."
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> In a [3]brief filing (PDF), Google's legal team informs the court that Google is prepared to begin distributing third-party app stores in Google Play on July 22. Under the terms of Judge Donato's original injunction, these stores will have access to the full catalog of Google Play apps by default. Developers will have the option to opt out of distribution in these stores, and Google has a [4]support page explaining how to do so. Google also has [5]documentation on how app stores can get access to the Google Play catalog. It won't be mirroring those apps in any shady storefront that asks. The court has allowed Google to charge reasonable fees to cover its security and compliance review of third-party stores, which will be $5,000 per year.
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> Google will also require approved stores to block malware, respect intellectual property, and include mechanisms to update and uninstall apps. App stores can be removed from the program if more than 1 percent of attempted app installs appear to be malware or unwanted software. It's unclear if there will be separate, possibly more stringent requirements for storefront distribution in the Play Store. However, Google is prohibited from unreasonably blocking third-party store clients uploaded to Google Play. The changes Google has announced under the Epic agreement will proceed for now. That means Registered App Stores will happen globally, but they will probably only appear in the Play Store for US users. Google hasn't specified if there will be any differences in the features available to the stores downloaded from Play versus registered stores.
[1] https://tech.slashdot.org/story/25/11/05/1729212/epic-and-google-settle-antitrust-case-with-global-fee-cuts-and-easier-third-party-store-access
[2] https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2026/07/third-party-app-stores-coming-to-google-play-next-week-as-epic-settlement-withdrawn/
[3] https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cand.364325/gov.uscourts.cand.364325.824.0.pdf
[4] https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/17187609
[5] https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/17117200?hl=en
Mixed Feelings (Score:2)
I've got mixed feelings. While it's good to encourage competition (and should apply to apple too....) I also suspect that we're going to see some unfortunate users affected by malware distributed through third party stores. I'd much rather fair terms on fees be enforced and removing unreasonable restrictions like Apple's on browsers.
HA (Score:2)
The best part is that Sweeney got nothing out of this. Only a wish and a prayer that he can turn a storefront into something profitable "this time".
Hopefully this kneecaps the Sept. APK lockdown (Score:2)
... but I'm not hopeful. In a way I hope Google still turns the screws on installing apps, including the proposed 24-hr delay on 3rd-party apps. Linux smartphones are coming, and the more they squeeze us, the more incentive to finish truly open phone platforms.
An Epic Play Store? (Score:1)
Downloading anything from Epic is the last thing I would do.
Hopefully Google won't hamstring this (Score:3)
Hopefully Google won't hamstring this by forcing you to enable "install apps from any source" setting to use non-Google app stores. If I use an alternate app store I don't want to let apps from just anywhere be installed, I only want apps from that app store to be installed. Apps from anywhere else I want to continue to block.
Still won't be good for consumers (Score:2)
All it is, is companies complaining that google gets to exploit, steal peoples data and make a bunch of a money from it, and they want to do it too! It's not fair that only google can!
Zero fucking interest in this as it has nothing to do with making things better or more fair for consumers.
F-Droid (Score:3)
Does this mean I will be able to download F-Droid from Google Play?
Re:F-Droid (Score:4, Insightful)
Nope. Google is still set to kill F-Droid later this year when they turn on mandatory developer certificates which will require developers to pay Google and hand over their personal information, regardless of what app store they want to distribute through. This will essentially kill F-Droid for casual users (their main target is almost certainly NewPipe). Yes you can still use F-Droid but you'll have to do a 24 hour delay before you can install F-Droid.
Re: (Score:3)
> Nope. Google is still set to kill F-Droid later this year when they turn on mandatory developer certificates which will require developers to pay Google and hand over their personal information, regardless of what app store they want to distribute through.
Nonsense. There's no reason to expect that mandatory developer certificates will kill F-Droid, at all. F-Droid will need one guy to pay the $25 fee and identify himself. Unless they can use the open source developer exception that Google has talked about (but hasn't announced any details, AFAIK).
> This will essentially kill F-Droid for casual users (their main target is almost certainly NewPipe). Yes you can still use F-Droid but you'll have to do a 24 hour delay before you can install F-Droid.
That's a bigger issue, because Google's announced policy is to require that apps respect intellectual property, which would include not distributing apps that blatantly violate terms of service. Most likely F-Dr
Re:F-Droid [and broader solutions] (Score:2)
Okay, I'll say it sounds like a reasonable question for a plausible FP, but do you [TwistedGreen or caseih or another reader] care to say enough to make anyone care? Even care enough to "encourage" a websearch?
My problem with websearch these weeks is the AIs lie and hallucinate too much. On the second hand they are so polite about it that the "conversations" are often more pleasant than what you see on today's Slashdot, but still. Mostly I don't want to talk to it. It's almost enough to drive a human to Bin