Google Reaches a Provisional Settlement in a Class Action Antitrust Suit Against Its US Play Store

Google reached a tentative settlement in a class action lawsuit accusing it of overcharging its US Play Store customers. Again, the lawsuit, filed by Attorneys General of about 30 states and Google Play customers, alleged that Google failed to comply with the US federal antitrust rules and regulations.

Details on Google's Tentative Settlement

Alphabet Inc., the US-based tech holding company behind Google, offered a conditional settlement to the plaintiffs in a class action suit on its US Play Store yesterday, August 5, 2023.

The group filed a lawsuit against Google, accusing the firm of negligence to the US federal antitrust guidelines. The suit stated that Google overcharged its customers on the US Google Play Store.

Furthermore, the class action plaintiffs stated that Google's monopoly caused the Play Store customers to spend so much on mobile apps and left them with few alternatives. The plaintiffs comprise over 30 US state attorney generals, representing about 21 million of Google's customers.

The company's preliminary settlement came before the court hearing on the case scheduled for November. It also followed a ruling annulment in July by US District Judge James Donato, granting the plaintiffs a class action status.

According to BNN Bloomberg, the proposed deal was on a court filing submitted yesterday, September 5.The report noted that the class action plaintiffs, Utah's attorney general's legal team, and Google met the presiding judge to cancel the November trial. However, details of the proposed tentative settlement remain undisclosed.

Nonetheless, if the judge refuses the cancelation request, both parties will continue litigation. But the judge accepting the trial cancelation request implies that Google will evade a court hearing scheduled for November by meeting the requirements of the proposed settlement.

It's worth mentioning that the parties will reveal the details of the provisional settlement at the October 12 court hearing.

Google Is Fighting Many Antitrust Claims

Recently, Google has faced several antitrust lawsuits. Earlier, a Californian court filed a lawsuit against Google, accusing it of exhibiting illegal monopoly practices.

The suit alleged that the firm unlawfully monopolized the development and maintenance of mobile apps on Android smartphones. Furthermore, Google also has a court lawsuit against it by Epic Games and Match Group. In its lawsuit, Epic Games complained that it was not part of the proposed Google settlement.

Tim Sweeney, the founder and CEO of Epic Games, said the firm would like to be on good terms again with Google if only it could stop monopolizing payments. Epic Games also wants Google to stop imposing taxes on third-party transactions.

However, Match Group, one of the firms that sued Google for violating antitrust rules, has not said anything about Google's tentative settlement.However, reports show that Google settled some app developers who sued it for overusing its monopoly on the US Play Store. According to the reports, the tech company agreed to pay $90 million to Android app creators in the United States.

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