Alphabet, the parent company of Google, will have to implement major changes to its Play Store after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to pause key parts of a federal judge’s injunction. The order, resulting from a 2020 lawsuit filed by Epic Games, maker of Fortnite, requires Google to allow users to download rival app stores within Play and make its app catalog accessible to competitors.
These provisions will take effect in July 2026, while Google must also permit developers to include external links in apps to bypass Google’s billing system, effective later this month. Google has called the order “unprecedented,” warning it could cause reputational harm, safety risks, and a competitive disadvantage. The company added that the changes would affect more than 100 million U.S. Android users and 500,000 developers, and plans to file a full appeal to the Supreme Court by October 27, 2025.
Epic Games criticized Google’s position, arguing the company relies on “flawed security claims” to maintain control over Android devices and urged the court to allow the injunction to take effect, saying it would provide consumers and developers with “competition, choices and lower prices.” In July, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the injunction, noting the lawsuit record was “replete with evidence that Google’s anticompetitive conduct entrenched its dominance.” Google also faces additional lawsuits from the government, consumer, and commercial plaintiffs challenging its search and advertising practices.
