In October 2024, Google asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to temporarily pause enforcement of the injunction in Epic Games’ antitrust case over the Google Play Store. Google argued that the timetable for changing Play Store operations was too short and could create security and operational risks. The request concerned when the injunction would take effect—not whether the jury’s verdict had been erased. Later appellate and Supreme Court proceedings shaped the case’s course.
What Google asked the Ninth Circuit to do
Google sought an emergency stay of Judge James Donato’s injunction while appellate proceedings continued. A stay is temporary relief that pauses enforcement of an order; it is not the same as overturning the order or winning an appeal on the merits. An administrative stay, if granted, is a short-term pause while a court considers a fuller stay request. Google’s October 2024 request should not be confused with its later requests for relief in the Ninth Circuit and Supreme Court. The contemporaneous filing coverage is archived by Techmeme.
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The underlying antitrust appeal and a request to suspend enforcement are related but distinct. Google was asking the court to delay implementation while review proceeded, not asking the Ninth Circuit to reconsider its own decision in that October filing. A stay also would not, by itself, erase the jury’s liability finding.
What the Epic injunction sought to change
Epic challenged Google’s Android app-distribution and billing practices. After a jury found Google’s Play Store arrangements unlawful, Judge Donato issued a permanent injunction requiring changes to how Google operated Play. The Ninth Circuit’s July 2025 opinion describes provisions addressing rival app stores’ access to Google Play’s app catalog, distribution of competing stores, and limits on Google’s ability to require or favor its own billing system. The operative terms and appellate history are set out in the Ninth Circuit’s July 31, 2025 opinion.
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This was broader than a requirement to permit sideloading: Android already allowed users to install apps outside Google Play. The dispute concerned whether rival storefronts and alternative billing could compete meaningfully within the Play ecosystem, including access to apps and the rules governing distribution and payment.
Why Google said immediate compliance was risky
Google argued that the compliance deadline left too little time to redesign, test, and deploy changes to Play Store systems. It warned that broader access for third-party app stores or to Play’s catalog could expose users and developers to malware, fraud, privacy problems, and other safety risks, and could make it harder to verify apps and respond to abuse.
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- To redeem, enter code in the Play Store app or play.google.com.
- Endless games to explore: Find and play old and new favorites – from mind-bending puzzles to epic quests and more.
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Those were Google’s arguments for emergency relief, not a finding that the injunction would necessarily make Android less safe. The practical effects would depend on the injunction’s precise requirements, technical safeguards, and implementation. Google’s position on the short timetable and alleged risks was summarized in contemporaneous coverage of the October 2024 filing.
Epic’s counterargument
Epic opposed Google’s later request for a partial stay at the Supreme Court. Its response materials argued against delaying remedies after the verdict and defended the need to change the practices at issue. The filing is included in the Supreme Court docket materials. These are the parties’ competing positions; neither side’s advocacy should be mistaken for a court’s independent finding on every claimed security or competition effect.
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- No returns and no refunds on gift cards. Good for use on the US Google Play Store only. Terms apply - see below.
- Google Play gift codes can be used on the Google Play Store, the official app store for Android, to purchase apps, games, and more.
- To redeem, enter code in the Play Store app or play.google.com.
- Endless games to explore: Find and play old and new favorites – from mind-bending puzzles to epic quests and more.
- Just the app you’re looking for: Millions of apps means millions of ways to get things done, learn something new, and maybe even meet someone special.
How the stay requests proceeded
The 2024 filing was only one moment in a longer sequence. The Ninth Circuit later temporarily stayed the injunction while it considered Google’s appeal and stay requests. Its September 2025 opinion records that the injunction had been stayed pending appeal and that certain compliance deadlines were extended until 30 days after the mandate. Later, the appeals court declined Google’s bid to continue freezing the Play Store changes, as reported by Reuters via Investing.com. The September 12, 2025 Ninth Circuit opinion provides the court’s account of the stay and deadline history.
Google then sought a partial stay from the Supreme Court while pursuing further review. The application, docketed as 25A354, was referred to the full Court and denied on October 6, 2025. That was a denial of the stay application, not a final Supreme Court ruling on every issue in the case. The procedural entries appear on the Supreme Court docket.
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- No returns and no refunds on gift cards. Good for use on the US Google Play Store only. Terms apply - see below.
- Google Play gift codes can be used on the Google Play Store, the official app store for Android, to purchase apps, games, and more.
- To redeem, enter code in the Play Store app or play.google.com.
- Endless games to explore: Find and play old and new favorites – from mind-bending puzzles to epic quests and more.
- Just the app you’re looking for: Millions of apps means millions of ways to get things done, learn something new, and maybe even meet someone special.
What the dispute could mean for Android users and developers
For Android users
If implemented under the applicable court orders, the changes could make rival app stores and alternative ways to pay more accessible. They could also affect how users find, install, update, and evaluate apps, and who provides safeguards such as malware screening, parental controls, and refunds. The orders do not mean that every Android phone will automatically offer rival stores, that every app will be available through them, or that Play Store restrictions disappear everywhere. Scope and rollout depend on the governing order and its implementation.
For developers
Alternative billing and storefronts could give developers more options and bargaining power, potentially reducing dependence on Google Play’s payment and distribution systems. But a lower platform commission would not necessarily mean lower total distribution costs. Developers using additional storefronts may have to manage separate integrations, updates, analytics, fraud controls, refunds, and customer support, while weighing those costs against Play’s reach and established trust signals.
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For Google and rival stores
For Google, broader access and billing choices could affect Play billing revenue and its control over app distribution and discovery, while creating new technical, security, and support obligations. For rival stores, access to Play’s catalog or distribution channels could improve their ability to compete, but the injunction’s terms—not a general guarantee of unrestricted access—set the boundaries.
Where the case stood after the emergency-stay news
The 2024 request is historical, not a current ruling. By 2026, Google and Epic were pursuing a proposed settlement involving changes to Play Store practices and lower commissions, according to the Associated Press. A proposal is not the same as a final, court-approved resolution, so the stay filing is best understood as one procedural stage in a continuing dispute over app distribution, billing, and competition.
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