Less than two weeks ago, Judge James Donato in California ruled that Google must open up its Android mobile operating system to third-party app stores in the US. That was supposed to happen by November 1. Today, Google got a big breather as the same judge granted the company a temporary administrative stay on that same decision.
This all goes back to another court battle in December 2023, when a jury decided that, in Google's legal battle with Epic Games, Google had a monopoly of control for launching apps for devices that used its Android OS. The jury also ruled it illegally tried to keep that monopoly in place with anti-competitive practices.
Judge Donato's decision earlier this month to set a November deadline for developers to ditch Google Play Billing for Android caused the company to ask for this temporary administrative stay claiming that the company was not given enough time. Today, The Verge reports that Judge Donato agreed with Google. In its own statement, Google said it was "pleased with the District Court’s decision." There has been no official comment from Epic Games on today's legal events.
The temporary stay could become much longer if the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decides to grant Google's request for a longer delay. Indeed, Judge Donato reportedly said he believes Google will get that delay, which means that any move to change Android app store rules could be pushed back by months or even years.
Just eight days ago, Microsoft's Xbox President Sarah Bond stated that due to Judge Donato's earlier ruling, it would allow Xbox gamers to purchase games and play them directly from the Android Xbox app in November. In light of today's decision by that judge, it's unlikely that change to the Xbox Android app will actually happen anytime soon.
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