{"id":329653,"date":"2026-03-05T04:43:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-05T04:43:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/329653\/"},"modified":"2026-03-05T04:43:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-05T04:43:12","slug":"google-isnt-waiting-for-a-settlement-the-30-percent-android-app-store-fee-is-dead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/329653\/","title":{"rendered":"Google isn\u2019t waiting for a settlement \u2014 the 30 percent Android app store fee is dead"},"content":{"rendered":"

In November, Epic and Google jointly proposed a settlement that would change Android\u2019s fate globally<\/a> without cracking open Google\u2019s Android monopoly<\/a> quite the way it otherwise might. Today, Google has decided it\u2019s not waiting for that settlement to be approved: it\u2019s moving forward with many of its proposed changes right now, rolling them out globally through 2027 \u2014 and we spoke to the heads of Android and Epic Games about the changes.<\/p>\n

By June 30th, Google writes,<\/a> it will lower most app store fees in the US, UK, and European Economic Area to 20 percent or less, down from 30 percent. By the end of the year, it will launch a \u201cRegistered App Stores\u201d program outside of the US, so that you can download and install third-party app stores (like the Epic Games Store) from the web without the friction that Google erected previously.<\/p>\n

Google will also let app developers offer their own billing systems \u201calongside Google Play\u2019s billing,\u201d at least for in-app purchases, and so it\u2019s separating its billing fees from its service fees in the calculations you\u2019ll see below.<\/p>\n

Here is the breakdown and example images of lower app store fees that Google submitted with the court, which includes quite an array of fees:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Image: US District Court<\/p>\n

Note that Google still keeps 25 percent when you pay for content inside an app you\u2019ve already purchased, it\u2019s following through on a plan to charge $2-4 or 20 percent if you follow a link to download or buy your content elsewhere<\/a>, and that the best deals involve signing up for a new Games Level Up or Apps Experience program; more about those here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how Google says it\u2019ll work if you have the best deals:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Image: Google<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Image: Google<\/p>\n

And here\u2019s the timeline that Google is sharing for fee changes to roll out:<\/p>\n

By June 30: EEA, the United Kingdom and the US.<\/p>\n

By September 30: Australia<\/p>\n

By December 31: Korea and Japan<\/p>\n

By September 30, 2027: The updates will reach the rest of the world.<\/p>\n

We will also launch the updated Games Level-Up program and new App Experience program by September 30 for EEA, UK, US, and Australia and then it will roll out in line with the rest of the schedule above.<\/p>\n

Note that while Google is mostly separating \u201cservice\u201d fees from \u201cbilling\u201d fees to give developers those promised discounts, it\u2019s talking about in-app purchases. It won\u2019t be the same if you buy a $5 app or game outright: \u201cThe fee for that will be 20 percent, but Google Play Billing for that is required, because it\u2019s inside Google Play where that purchasing is happening,\u201d Google Android boss Sameer Samat tells us.<\/p>\n

With Registered App Stores, another distinct program run by Google, the company is promising to not charge developers fees at all. \u201cThey don\u2019t pay any ongoing fees related to any of the transactions happening in the apps,\u201d says Samat. And installing them onto your Android device should be a relatively frictionless experience. That flow appears like this in court documents:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Image: US District Court<\/p>\n

Samat tells The Verge that his company will indeed be the one determining whether any given app store can qualify for the Registered App Store program; there is no independent auditor.<\/p>\n

But a term sheet filed with the court does tentatively say that Android will offer an appeal process if your app store is rejected, that Google Play will be subject to the same requirements as rival stores, and that \u201cGoogle will not use the above Trust & Safety requirements as a pretext to discriminate against any app store provider.\u201d<\/p>\n

Those specific requirements include that Registered App Stores need to be open to all eligible third-party developers, respect intellectual property rights, prevent the distribution of malware, offer parental controls, \u201cadhere to Android\u2019s technical requirements\u201d and more:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Image: Google term sheet<\/p>\n

Importantly, Google and Epic tell us that Registered App Stores will not have to pay per-app fees to Google, only a small one-time fee \u201cin the order of hundreds of dollars\u201d so Google can review and register those app stores to begin with. It won\u2019t have oversight over a registered store. \u201cWe\u2019ll do a malware scan of the apps, but we will not review the apps for content.\u201d<\/p>\n

And if app store developers opt out, they\u2019re still free to let users sideload their stores with the same friction as before. \u201cOnce a store is part of a Registered App Store program, installation flow for that store becomes more streamlined,\u201d says Samat.<\/p>\n

\"Parts<\/a><\/p>\n

Parts of the term sheet related to the US are contingent on Judge Donato approving, but some are apparently not. Image: Google term sheet<\/p>\n

According to the term sheet, Google will add Registered App Stores outside the US no later than the second major quarterly release of Android 17, later this year.<\/p>\n

Outside the US, Google plans to make other changes too, including mandating APIs so it can get its cut when you click out to an app developer\u2019s website and pay for purchases there within 24 hours, something it\u2019s already announced for the US. You\u2019ll probably find more surprises if you read through the documents we\u2019ve embedded in this story.<\/p>\n

To be clear, \u201cRegistered App Stores\u201d is not what a US court has ordered Google to create in the United States \u2014 Google must instead carry rival app stores inside of its own Google Play Store, and give them access to the full catalog of Android apps so they can meaningfully gain ground against Google and undo its monopoly.<\/p>\n

\u201cEnabling robust competition, can, we think, be accomplished by letting apps go through this Registered App Store program and be installed,\u201d Samat tells The Verge. But he says that Google is still complying with Judge Donato\u2019s original injunction until or unless he agrees to substitute Registered App Stores for store-within-a-store and catalog access. The new proposed injunction suggests Judge Donato do that, in exchange for Google to keep offering both Registered App Stores and normal sideloaded app stores through September 30th, 2032.<\/p>\n

You won\u2019t get both Registered App Stores and store-within-a-store, Epic and Google tell us. Outside the US, you\u2019ll be able to download Registered App Stores from the web; inside the US, Google will prepare to carry rival stores within its own store unless Judge Donato changes his mind. \u201cWe are suggesting to the court that the Registered App Store program is a better approach to creating competition for app stores than distributing app stores in Google Play,\u201d says Samat.<\/p>\n

Epic, which quietly negotiated a secret $800 million deal with Google<\/a> before the proposed settlement, is applauding all these changes. But while Epic and Google both say these changes settle the companies\u2019 disputes worldwide \u2014 \u201cWe are also excited to announce that we\u2019ve resolved all our disputes with Epic Games globally!\u201d writes Android boss Sameer Samat<\/a> \u2014 he admits that\u2019s not yet true in the US.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn other places around the world where we have a legal process\u2026 where a settlement can be done without needing approval from someone else, we are going to settle those disputes,\u201d he tells me. \u201cIn all other places where there are no disputes, we just intend to move forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

In their new proposed settlement in the United States, a redlined version of which you can read below, Google and Epic are trying to partially walk back at least two of the court\u2019s other antitrust remedies. First, Google wants to be able to stop developers from linking to apps outside its own Google Play Store, something Samat claims is a security concern because it can\u2019t police every link out to the web. \u201cWe\u2019ve seen a lot of malware hit users in that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf a developer wants to link out to have a transaction concluded on their website, that\u2019s all fine,\u201d but he says that Google Play apps shouldn\u2019t link directly to software outside the store because users expect Google\u2019s own platform to be safe.<\/p>\n

Above: a redlined version of Google and Epic\u2019s proposed changes to the injunction.<\/p>\n

The second thing Google and Epic are trying to walk back is a prohibition on Google paying or otherwise incentivizing developers to put their apps exclusively on Android, \u201cprovided that the developer is free to choose any Android app store for distribution in the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n

Epic CEO Tim Sweeney claims that Google\u2019s changes will lead to \u201cthe restoration of a healthy market, which is in complete contrast to what\u2019s happening on iOS\u201d where Apple is still blocking competing stores and\/or charging a \u201cCore Technology Fee\u201d<\/a> on outside purchases. He says the changes mean Google will no longer be reaching into developers\u2019 businesses or erecting the kind of unreasonable friction that saw Epic lose 65 percent of users who tried to install its store from the web but gave up along the way.<\/p>\n

Samat says that \u201cwith AI and what\u2019s happening with gaming and the Metaverse and everything,\u201d it is now \u201cimportant to build instead of quarreling.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is not just about doing what\u2019s required,\u201d he adds. \u201cWe are proactively evolving because we believe a modern platform must be based on choice and user safety.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sweeney says: \u201cWe\u2019ve always been fighting for open platforms here, and we have one now.\u201d But he would say things like that now, I suppose. He signed a binding legal agreement<\/a> that keeps him from speaking out against Google.<\/p>\n

You can read Google and Epic\u2019s full court filings for yourself (minus some redactions) below.<\/p>\n

Update, March 4th: Added a full list of Google\u2019s planned fees that it submitted to the court, which reveals that Google plans to charge when users follow links from Google\u2019s app store to outside purchases and downloads; that it will still charge 25 percent service fee, not 20 percent, in some scenarios; and that Tim Sweeney has signed away his ability to criticize Google\u2019s app store practices.<\/p>\n

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See All Tech<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In November, Epic and Google jointly proposed a settlement that would change Android\u2019s fate globally without cracking open…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":329654,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[2723,213,1711,61,60,202,43,3667,1094,216,80],"class_list":{"0":"post-329653","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mobile","8":"tag-android","9":"tag-gaming","10":"tag-google","11":"tag-ie","12":"tag-ireland","13":"tag-mobile","14":"tag-news","15":"tag-policy","16":"tag-report","17":"tag-tech","18":"tag-technology"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/329653","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=329653"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/329653\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/329654"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=329653"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=329653"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=329653"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}