Google faces $1 billion trial in UK for overcharging on app store purchases
The case is not anticipated to go to trial until 2024
Alphabet-owned Google is facing trial in the UK in a £920 million ($1.1 billion) class-action lawsuit alleging that the company overcharged 19.5 million customers for app store purchases.
According to Reuters, a court has authorised a lawsuit which claims that Google abused its dominance in the market by charging users fees of up to 30% on apps including Candy Crush, Tinder, and Roblox since October 2015
Liz Coll, a former manager of digital policy at the legal non-profit organisation Citizens Advice, filed the class action lawsuit that was certified by the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) on Monday.
Coll claims Google exploited its position at the expense of Android smartphone and tablet consumers in the UK, and that the Play Store commission is illegal and in breach of European and British competition rules.
The legal team at Hausfeld is advising Coll in this matter.
The lawsuit is not anticipated to go to trial until 2024, and the judgment's full text has not yet been made public.
The case is just one of several instances where regulators and users have acted to restrain major tech firms like Google and Apple over suspected anti-competitive behaviour.
The lawsuit comes a day after a case filed in the United States, accusing Apple of making $1 billion annually in fees to payment card companies by compelling them to sign up for Apple Pay as the sole means for their consumers to make payments from iPhones and Apple Watches.
On Monday, Hagens Berman and Sperling & Slater filed the legal case, seeking to represent a class of credit unions and other financial institutions in the US that provide customers with payment cards intended for use with Apple Pay.
Last month, Google agreed to pay $90 million to settle a class-action lawsuit brought by US developers over Google's alleged anti-competitive behaviour regarding the Google Play Store.
That lawsuit stated that Google illegally maintained a monopoly in the US market for Android OS distribution services and in-app product transaction services, and that it abused its position to stifle competition that would have benefited all Android app developers.
Google said the settlement would allow both parties to move forward, avoiding years of uncertain and distracting litigation.
In addition to the settlement, Google promised updates to Android 12 that would make it easier for users to access rival app stores on their smartphones.
The firm also promised to update its Developer Distribution Agreement to clarify that developers may utilise in-app contact information to direct users to offers on competing app stores or the developer's own website.
Earlier this year, Sweden-based price comparison service PriceRunner sued Google for about €2.1 billion (£1.8 billion) for manipulating its search results to promote the company's own shopping comparisons in results.