Google “bought off Samsung” to limit app store competition, 36 states allege

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Yesterday, dozens of state attorneys general sued Google on antitrust grounds, alleging that the company worked to preemptively quash" competing app stores (most notably the Samsung Galaxy Store) and maintain its monopoly on Android app distribution.

The lawsuit alleges that Google engaged in a range of anticompetitive practices, including offering large app developers profit-sharing agreements in exchange for exclusivity, creating unnecessary hurdles for sideloading, and attempting to buy off Samsung to limit competition from the Samsung Galaxy app store."

Google says the lawsuit is meritless." It's strange that a group of state attorneys general chose to file a lawsuit attacking a system that provides more openness and choice than others," Wilson White, Google's senior director of public policy, wrote in a blog post.

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