Google Play Must Carry Rival Android App Stores On July 22
The Verge reported that Google and Epic Games withdrew a bid to modify the Epic v. Google injunction. Google Play is set to carry rival Android app stores in the United States from July 22, while app-store billing economics, terms beyond the review charge of $5,000 and early store participants remain outside the public record.
Google Play must begin carrying rival Android app stores inside Google Play on July 22 after Google and Epic Games withdrew their joint motion to modify a court injunction, The Verge reported.
Google told the court it was ready to start carrying third-party app stores on that date.
The change follows the Epic v. Google antitrust case over Android app distribution in the United States.
The withdrawn motion leaves the original court remedy in place for now, ending Google's attempt to replace it with a different registered-store model.
Google Play Must Carry Rival Android App Stores
The injunction requires Google to carry rival Android app stores inside Google Play and to share the Play catalogue of apps with those stores.
The remedy applies to Android app distribution in the United States.
Judge James Donato agreed in October 2024 that carrying rival stores and sharing the catalogue was the best way to undo Google's illegal monopoly over Android applications.
Google had continued fighting the order before the companies jointly asked to change it.
The operational shift is unusual because Google Play is not merely being told to tolerate outside distribution.
It must provide a route for rival stores inside the dominant Android storefront, which changes discovery, trust and catalogue access for third-party store operators.
Court Order Keeps Play Catalogue Access In Place
The abandoned proposal would have created Registered App Stores that users would sideload rather than download directly through Google Play.
The court had scheduled a July 16 hearing on whether to accept Google's requested modification.
Google's quoted statement said the company and Epic withdrew the motion rather than prolong a process that created uncertainty for the ecosystem.
The statement said Google would focus on a global business-model change meant to offer more app-store choice, lower prices and more opportunities for developers and users.
For developers, catalogue access matters because store competition is weaker if rival stores must build app supply from scratch.
For Google, the malware and policy-review requirements become the main mechanism for limiting risk while complying with the injunction.
Google Lists $5,000 Store Review Fee
For access to the Google Play catalogue, Google will charge rival stores an annual review fee of $5,000 for security and policy reviews.
Store operators must also meet requirements covering eligible developers, trust and safety policies, United States distribution limits and malware thresholds.
The requirements include a rule that no more than 1% of install attempts can be malware.
Google also says the stores cannot distribute apps outside the United States and must be open to all eligible third-party developers.
Billing Terms Remain Outside The Record
The broader economics of Android app distribution and billing remain unclear.
Earlier parts of the case put reduced fees and outside payments on the table, while the July 22 store-access change is the immediate operational step.
Microsoft's Xbox store remains one possible beneficiary because Epic's settlement plan had previously raised the question of third-party store access for game platforms.
The public record cited by The Verge does not name the first rival stores, list billing terms beyond the $5,000 review fee or specify how Google will enforce the 1% malware threshold.
