Brazil’s competition authority investigated Google over Android contracts that could tie access to Google Play to the placement or exclusivity of Google Search and Chrome. The case is no longer a newly opened or unresolved investigation: CADE’s tribunal approved a negotiated cease-and-desist agreement on December 10, 2025, and the authority announced it on December 22. The inquiry was suspended while Google fulfills the agreement’s commitments. This was about Android distribution terms—not, on the evidence CADE announced, Google Play’s developer billing fees.
What CADE investigated
CADE, Brazil’s Administrative Council for Economic Defense, examined agreements Google used with mobile-device manufacturers and operators. The authority’s concern was that those arrangements could make access to important Android services, including Google Play, conditional on installing or prominently placing Google Search and Chrome, or on granting those services exclusivity. CADE described the conduct as alleged anticompetitive practices; the negotiated agreement is not a final ruling that Google violated competition law. CADE’s announcement and its Portuguese-language approval notice set out the scope and status.
The three types of agreements
- AFA/ACC: Anti-Fragmentation Agreement arrangements relating to Android compatibility.
- MADA: Mobile Application Distribution Agreements governing Google’s mobile-app package.
- RSA: Revenue Sharing Agreements with device partners.
CADE’s theory was that these contracts could use access to Android services or commercial benefits to influence which search and browser products appeared on devices. Android itself is an operating system; Google Play and Google’s proprietary mobile-app services are a separate layer commonly licensed with it. Not every Android distribution uses Google Play.
What the December 2025 agreement requires
The agreement, known in Brazil as a Termo de Compromisso de Cessação (TCC), establishes contractual commitments rather than a fine or conviction in this case. According to CADE, Google must:
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- Stop conditioning Google Play licensing on pre-installation or prominent placement of Google Search or Chrome.
- Not retaliate against manufacturers that do not adopt Search or Chrome.
- Abandon relevant exclusivity clauses and avoid linking RSA payments to exclusivity for search services.
- Notify partners of the revised conditions.
- Comply with transparency and monitoring measures overseen by CADE’s Office of the Superintendent General.
CADE approved the TCC on December 10, 2025. It announced the agreement on December 22 and said the investigation was suspended pending fulfillment of Google’s obligations. The authority’s announcement does not establish that compliance has been completed or that every manufacturer has changed its device arrangements.
What the agreement does—and does not—change
The commitments address the terms governing Google Play access and the placement or exclusivity of Search and Chrome. Their practical effect depends on how Google implements the revised terms and how manufacturers respond. Manufacturers may have more room to decline those placements without losing Google Play access under the covered arrangements, but the agreement does not require them to pre-install a rival app or offer a universal choice screen.
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- It does not ban Google Play, break up Android, or require Google apps to disappear from devices.
- It does not automatically change existing phones or guarantee that consumers will see a new choice screen.
- The cited CADE materials do not establish a change to Google Play commissions, developer billing rules, app-review policies, or alternative-store access.
- It does not amount to a final merits finding that Google broke competition law.
Why defaults and distribution terms matter
A search engine or browser can remain downloadable and still face a disadvantage if a competing service is pre-installed, prominently displayed, or selected by default. Defaults shape visibility and can raise the effort required to switch, so competition concerns can center on distribution and incentives even when alternatives technically exist.
There is also a genuine trade-off. Integrated app packages and compatibility requirements can support a more consistent experience, technical support, and security across Android devices. But if access to an important service such as Google Play is tied to placement or exclusivity for other Google products, rivals may have a harder time reaching users. CADE presented its agreement as a way to address the alleged restrictions while preserving Android’s compatibility model; that is the regulator’s framing, not proof that every competitive concern has been eliminated.
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What it means for manufacturers, consumers, and developers
Device manufacturers and operators
The covered partners should have greater contractual latitude to reject Search or Chrome placement without losing Google Play access or facing retaliation under the arrangements addressed by the TCC. Whether that leads to different app configurations depends on revised contracts and manufacturers’ own commercial and product decisions.
Consumers
Consumers could eventually see more variation in which search and browser apps are pre-installed or emphasized on Android devices. That is a possible indirect effect, not a guaranteed immediate change to current phones or a promised interface from CADE.
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App developers
The case concerns Google’s relationships with manufacturers and operators. It does not, on the cited materials, alter developers’ Play Store fees, payment obligations, review processes, or rights to distribute through other stores.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Do not confuse this with CADE’s separate Google case
In April 2026, CADE separately returned a 2019 matter concerning Google’s use of news content and search for deeper investigation, including issues related to generative-AI features, according to Reuters reporting published by UOL. That is a different proceeding from the Android distribution agreement and its December 2025 settlement.
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