Epic is suing Samsung, saying its phone’s user interface, known as the Epic Games Store, is designed to restrict competition. Samsung’s latest OneUI update 6.1.1 is built on Android 14 and blocks app sideloading by default on the latest phones. Now, Epic is filing a lawsuit Both Google and Samsung “prevent every other store from competing on a level playing field.”
in its litigationEpic argued that Samsung and Google had been colluding to maintain dominance of the Play Store and put its own Galaxy Store in a “secondary position.” The publisher claimed that “Google is calling on its long-time partner Samsung to eliminate these competitive threats and update the moat that protects the Play Store from competition” when it restricted sideloading of separate app stores by default in OneUI.
The case will hinge on whether there was actual collusion between Google and Samsung. Epic points out that before the Google Play Store was labeled a monopoly, automatic blockers were not a default feature on phones. The “auto-block” setting on Samsung devices creates a wall between users and third-party app stores. While the feature is optional on older devices (it’s turned off by default if you update to 6.1.1 from a previous version of OneUI), it’s Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 and Z-fold 6 The South Korean tech giant released the phone earlier this year. We still need to see if Samsung will enable the auto-blocker by default in its latest version Samsung Galaxy S24 FE device.
CEO Tim Sweeney told reporters (via The Verge) that he hopes more evidence of alleged collusion between Google and Samsung will emerge during the discovery process.
Epic claims this results in a “tedious 21-step” process to download apps outside of the Google Play Store or Samsung Galaxy Store. However, part of the process described by Epic involves being unable to launch the Epic Games Store without first going through the relatively simple process of disabling the auto-blocker through Settings, Security, and Privacy. However, that doesn’t detract from the essence of these so-called dark modes, which inhibit users from loading external app stores. After all, epic Might know a thing or two about dark patterns.
A Samsung spokesperson said in an emailed statement that the company plans to respond to Epic’s lawsuit.
“The features integrated into our devices are designed according to Samsung’s core principles of security, privacy and user control, and we remain fully committed to protecting our users’ personal data,” the spokesperson said. “Users can choose to deactivate automatic blockers at any time.”
Gizmodo reached out to Google for comment, but we did not immediately receive a response.
The Epic Games Store is technically Return to Android system and iOS – although the latter is only available in the EU. However, even as Epic prepares to relaunch Fortress Heroes on mobile, the publisher and Sweeney claim they have Removed their service from Samsung Device. At the time, Epic echoed its new lawsuit by claiming that Samsung worked with Google to “restrict competition in the Android app distribution market.”
In early 2023, data sleuths discovered how Android 14 may restrict users Avoid sideloading older versions of apps. The latest version of OneUI goes beyond Google by blocking users from downloading a separate app store by default. You can disable auto-blocking through system settings, but Epic believes this restriction is intended to prevent users from returning to the Play Store. Epic notes that Samsung devices have the largest market share of Android phones in the U.S.
Epic repeatedly mentions this monopolistic behavior throughout its 39-page lawsuit. The publisher said Google knew the more than 15 steps to install Fortnite on Android were intentionally “horrible.” This is because the “unknown source” installation process requires multiple workarounds. Epic says the auto-block apps feature acts like “Unknown Sources” because it requires users to take several extra steps under the guise of security to install the apps they want.
To review, Epic started this mess back in 2020 It created a way to make in-app purchases in the Epic Games Store, bypassing Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store policies. Both tech giants kicked Epic off their platforms, and the publisher sued Google and Apple respectively. The court ultimately sided with Apple, saying it was not a monopoly but required the tech giant to open up its ecosystem and allow in-app sales outside of the App Store. Compared with last December, when the jury decided Google Monopolize the Android app store.
