Epic has won again. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals will not overturn the unanimous jury verdict from 2023 that Google’s app store and payments system had become illegal monopolies. Today, that appeals court affirmed the lower court’s decision, according to an full opinion you can read below — and Google will now appeal to the Supreme Court, the company confirms to The Verge.
Judge M. Margaret McKeown begins her opinion for the court:
In the world of adrenaline-fueled survival that epitomizes the video game Fortnite, winners are decided in blazes of destruction and glory. By contrast, the outcome of this case—centered on Fortnite’s developer, Epic Games, and the Google Android platform—turns on longstanding principles of trial procedure, antitrust, and injunctive remedies.
“Total victory in the Epic v Google appeal!” tweets Epic CEO Tim Sweeney.
“This decision will significantly harm user safety, limit choice, and undermine the innovation that has always been central to the Android ecosystem. Our top priority remains protecting our users, developers and partners, and maintaining a secure platform as we continue our appeal,” writes Google global of regulatory affairs Lee-Anne Mulholland in a statement shared with The Verge.
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