Key facts
- Google's parent company, Alphabet, has agreed to pay £260 million to settle a class action lawsuit.
- The lawsuit alleged Google imposed unfair and excessive charges on app developers selling through the Google Play Store.
- The case was brought by competition law professor Barry Rodger on behalf of UK app developers.
- The settlement is subject to approval by the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT).
- UK app developers who sold content via the Google Play Store from August 2018 are potentially eligible for compensation.
Google's parent company, Alphabet, has agreed to pay £260 million to settle a class action lawsuit that alleged the US company imposed "unfair and excessive" charges on app developers selling apps on the Google Play Store.
The case, brought to the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) by competition law professor Barry Rodger on behalf of UK app developers, claimed Google abused its dominant market position by charging excessive commissions for transactions made through its Play Store to Android customers.
The hearing was due to be heard at the Tribunal on September 15, but the parties reached the settlement ahead of a 10-week trial, which is subject to the CAT’s approval, according to a statement from Geradin Partners, the law firm representing the claimants. UK-based app developers who sold content through the Google Play Store from August 2018 are potentially eligible for compensation through the settlement if they do not opt out.
Damien Geradin, founding partner of Geradin Partners, said the case is “the largest settlement to date” under the UK’s class action regime for competition claims, which “should see money getting into developers’ hands less than three years after the claim was filed.”
Payouts will vary for each developer, and will be decided based on their qualifying sales on the Play Store since August 2018. “For thousands of UK app developers, many of them small businesses, the Play Store is the only realistic route to their customers – and they had little choice but to pay Google’s commission,” professor Barry Rodger said. Rodger added that if the Tribunal approves the settlement, “meaningful financial compensation will become available for businesses that could never have taken on a company like Google alone.”
A spokesperson for Google said: “We are pleased to reach an agreement with the developers to end this litigation, subject to court approval. We remain committed to supporting the UK developer community in building the next generation of digital experiences.”