The Epic vs Google Legal Battle continues on as we have just heard new statements from Epic CEO, Tim Sweeney and this time he has more shots to fire at Google. Recently, Sweeney spoke about how Google has “de facto control” over Android apps. Now, he has come out to speak about how Google once offered them a “crooked deal”.
To get you up to speed super fast on why this Trial is going on, Epic Games was asked to give a 30% commission on all in-app purchases. Epic wasn’t happy about that and figured out their own payment process which was in clear violation of Google’s policies. In retaliation, Google nuked Fortnite from the Play Store and here we are.
Epic Games CEO: Google offer a ‘crooked arrangement’ to bring Epic back on Google Play Store
According to a report by AP (via Eurogamer), Tim Sweeney took to the stand recently during the trial and had some choice of words to say about Google. Through his statements, Sweeney revealed a conversation with Google that would allow Fortnite back on the Play Store. However, he wasn’t too happy about how Google approached it.
Sweeny stated, “it seemed like a crooked arrangement, Google was proposing a series of side deals, which seemed designed to convince Epic not to compete against them.” We do not know what kind of deal was offered, but Epic rejected it and tried to fly solo, by allowing players to download Fortnite on Android devices directly through a website, and not through the Play Store.
Also read: Epic Games Store Is Offering Two New Games This Week for Free Including Earthlock; Upcoming Title Also Revealed
However, this plan didn’t work in their favor, Sweeney explained that it became a “depressing process”. So they returned to Play Store, with a plan in mind however to oppose Google. This Is where Project Liberty entered the situation, which was essentially an alternate payment option for Fortnite. This is why the application was removed from Play Store in 2020 and Epic ended up filing anti-trust lawsuits against Google.
Continue reading: Google Had Plans to Purchase Epic in Partnership with Tencent According to New Documents; Epic CEO Talks About Google’s Control Over Android Apps
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