The US Supreme Court has declined to pause a federal judge’s order requiring Google to make major changes to its Play app store, as the company appeals a lawsuit filed by Epic Games.

Epic, which makes Fortnite, sued Google in 2020, claiming its app store rules violated antitrust laws.

A jury sided with Epic in 2023, and Judge James Donato later ordered Google to let users download rival app stores and allow competitors access to Play’s app catalog starting July 2026.

Another part of the order, taking effect later this month, will let developers include external links in apps so users can bypass Google’s billing system.

Google said it will continue its appeal, arguing the changes could affect over 100 million US Android users and 500,000 developers.

Epic said the order will give developers more freedom and promote competition.

🔗 Source: Reuters

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