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A federal jury has submitted a verdict in the antitrust case between Epic Games and Google, and the Fortnite developer has reason to celebrate. The jury ruled unanimously in favor of Epic, as it determined Google holds an illegal monopoly through its Google Play Store.
The ruling follows a four-week court trial between the two giant corporations, which was meant to decide whether or not Google was using anti-competitive tactics with its online store, where millions of apps are sold daily. The decision came after just three hours of closed-door deliberations.
All 11 questions on the verdict questionnaire were answered in Epic’s favor, including one which asked if Google “willfully acquired or maintained monopoly power by engaging in anti-competitive conduct.” Google achieved this, the verdict continues, through the “Android app distribution market” and “in-app billing services” as specified by the presiding juror.
Epic called the ruling “a win for all app developers and consumers around the world” in a post on its official website. The post continues by saying “Google’s app store practices are illegal and they abuse their monopoly to extract exorbitant fees, stifle competition and reduce innovation.”
No official punishments or recommendations have been announced as of the ruling’s release. Wilson White, Google’s vice president for government affairs and public policy, said in a statement that the company plans to appeal the verdict.
