Alphabet To Pay $40 Million To Match In Google Play Accord
(Bloomberg) -- Alphabet Inc. agreed to pay $40 million to Match Group Inc. to settle claims that Google Play policies are unlawful, resolving an antitrust complaint that endangered billions of dollars in revenue generated by the search engine's app marketplace, according to the online dating service.
Lawyers representing Match and Google said in a court filing Tuesday they've agreed to drop all claims and counterclaims against each other. Match said in its earnings report that its brands will get more favorable conditions on Google Play as part of the accord, which was announced before a trial scheduled for Nov. 6 in San Francisco federal court.
The dating-app company's complaint was part of a sprawling antitrust fight that also includes attorneys general of almost three dozen states, consumers and Epic Games Inc., all of whom accuse Google of monopolizing its app store's distribution, payment and fee policies.
The fight doesn't end for Alphabet as it will still have to face Epic at a trial set to start Nov. 2. US District Judge James Donato told both companies to let him know by Wednesday if they would like to proceed with selecting a jury or have him decide the case himself.
In August, the technology giant tentatively settled claims in complaints brought by consumers and state attorneys general that Google Play abuses its control over Android mobile applications. Terms of that deal also weren't disclosed in court filings.
Match Agreement
All Match Group apps will use Google's User Choice Billing program that gives developers an opportunity to try out alternative billing methods by March 31, 2024, the dating service said in its earnings report. Match Group brands will pay standard rates of 15% on subscriptions and 30% for transactions that go through Google's payment system and 11% on subscriptions and 26% for in-app transactions made through its own payment options, according to the report.
The deal ensures Google can “continue to provide our shared users the secure, seamless and high quality experience people expect from apps on Google Play while maintaining Google's ability to invest in the Android ecosystem and deliver value across an app's full life cycle,” Google said in a statement.
Witnesses in the Epic case include Chief Executive Officer Tim Sweeney and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, according to court filings.
The high-stakes fight kicked off after Epic, maker of the popular Fortnite game, sued Google in 2020. Match brought similar claims against the search giant in a suit last year.
The case is In Re Google Play Store Antitrust Litigation, 21-md-02981, US District Court, Northern District of California (San Francisco).
(Updates with terms of agreement, Google comment)
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2023 Bloomberg L.P.
-
Talking Points This Week: Leadership Shock At Nvidia, Earnings Strength, And The Fog Over Hormuz
The Anthropic IPO pricing and first trading day, Nvidia's upcoming earnings, and any fresh signals from Iran will set the tone for the following week.
-
Signature Play: The Classic Cocktail Is Dead. Or Is It?
Classic cocktails are disappearing from India's cocktail menus. But they're still being ordered, taught to bartenders and borrowed from. So, who's really having the last drink?
-
A New Samvat Wishlist: Inclusive Prosperity And Human Development
India has strengthened its economic foundations through infrastructure, digital access and enterprise. Its next growth chapter must deepen productivity, create better livelihoods and widen participation in prosperity.
-
Love, Sex Aur Dhokha: The Audacious Plot To Spy On Jensen Huang
A Taipei dinner, a Singapore chip buyer and a suspected Chinese asset: inside the alleged spy operation that got close to NVIDIA's Jensen Huang.
-
Ten Things I Learnt This Samvat
Patience can be a trap. Cheap stocks can stay cheap. Leverage can wipe you out. What did Samvat 2082 teach us? Niraj Shah writes on 10 lessons from the year gone by.
-
Talking Points This Week: Tech Nerves, FII Buying, And A Faraway Banking Shock
The global markets are not shining this Diwali. The exception in the large markets is, India.
-
Midterm Rally Lasted A Day. The Hard Reality Of A Divided US May Last Two Years | Opinion
Between a contested AI boom, a debt ceiling that arrives in 2027 and a president with every incentive to act alone, the next two years may prove more volatile than the first day's rally suggests.
-
Blue Wave Will Derail the AI Trade but Won't Dismantle the AI Era | Unhedged Position
The Democrats' sweep of the US Congress will see politics collide with economic forces both over the long and short term.
-
It's Time To Take The GST Council's Bet On Trust Global
Payment records can prove India's services exports, and clear, proportionate rules can bring foreign digital sellers into the tax net.
-
Opinion | India at 38: From Innovation Overperformer to Innovation Powerhouse
India now has 453 VC-backed deep science startups, 18 of them late-stage, after 117 percent growth since 2020. Laurus Labs, at USD 9.3 billion, is the most valuable deep science company in any middle-income economy outside China.
