Google asked the U.S. Supreme Court to pause parts of the court-ordered changes to Google Play, warning that opening distribution and catalog access to rival app stores could create security and privacy risks. The Court denied that emergency request on October 6, 2025. By July 2026, Google said qualifying third-party U.S. Android stores could begin onboarding to its catalog-access program, while Google and Epic pursued a settlement-based revision to the injunction.
What Google asked the courts to pause
Google’s September 2025 application sought a partial stay of remedies in Epic Games v. Google while it pursued further review. It focused especially on requirements involving rival app-store distribution, access to Play Store catalog information, and restrictions on how Google could manage interactions between Play and third-party stores. Google said the remedies were broad, difficult to implement on the schedule set by the courts, and potentially harmful before the Supreme Court decided whether to hear its appeal. Google’s stay application sets out those arguments.
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This was not the same as Google’s separate request for Supreme Court review of the underlying judgment. A stay would have temporarily paused specified remedies; it would not itself have decided whether the antitrust judgment should ultimately stand.
Why the case targeted Google Play
Epic sued Google in 2020 after Google removed Fortnite from Play for violating its developer terms. Epic had introduced a way to bypass Google Play billing and distributed the game through other channels. The suit alleged that Google unlawfully monopolized Android app distribution and in-app billing. A jury trial followed in 2023, and the district court issued a permanent injunction in October 2024. The Department of Justice case page and district court case page provide background and case materials.
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The injunction addressed several kinds of conduct rather than ordering one simple change to the Play Store:
- Rival-store distribution: Google was restricted from blocking competing app stores from being distributed through Google Play on Android devices.
- Catalog access: Google was required to make Play Store catalog access available to qualifying rival stores under the court’s framework.
- Payment choice and steering: Developers gained greater freedom to use alternative billing and direct users to outside payment options.
- Exclusionary agreements: Google faced limits on certain agreements intended to discourage or block competing stores.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the injunction on July 31, 2025. Its opinion also recognized that Google could take reasonable measures to protect security and privacy and charge a reasonable fee tied to actual costs for certain services. The remedies did not require Google to abandon every safeguard. See the July 31 appellate opinion and the Ninth Circuit’s September 12 materials.
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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 security risks Google claimed
Google argued that rival stores could distribute malicious, deceptive, infringing, or pirated apps, and that Play might lose visibility into activity and security signals associated with those stores. It warned that users could encounter apps that had not gone through Google Play’s normal review process, while Google would be required to support or facilitate distribution it controlled less directly.
Google also argued that a compressed implementation schedule raised the risk of operational mistakes and security failures, and that screening, moderation, and incident-response costs could rise while its ability to recover those costs was constrained. Those were Google’s predictions about the effects of the remedies, not findings that the changes had in fact exposed users to malware. Google’s own public explanation of its appeal describes its policy and security position.
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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.
Why the emergency stay did not succeed
Epic argued that Google overstated the security consequences to preserve control over distribution. Android already permits installation outside Google Play, subject to device settings and user controls, and the injunction preserved room for reasonable safeguards. Epic also contended that the trial record did not support Google’s claim of imminent, irreparable security harm. Its opposition to the stay application presents that response.
On September 12, 2025, the Ninth Circuit denied rehearing and declined to stay the injunction pending Supreme Court review. It extended the deadline for catalog-access and store-distribution remedies to July 22, 2026. Google then applied to the Supreme Court for a partial stay on September 24; Epic filed its opposition on October 3. The Supreme Court denied Google’s stay application, docket 25A354, on October 6, 2025. That left the injunction in force; it was not a final ruling on every issue in Google’s underlying appeal. The Supreme Court docket records the denial.
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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 case moved into implementation and settlement
Google filed a separate petition asking the Supreme Court to review the underlying judgment on October 27, 2025, in docket 25-521. In March 2026, Google and Epic entered a settlement agreement and asked the district court to approve a revised modified injunction. The settlement did not make the previously denied stay successful or erase the court-supervised framework.
Google’s developer documentation says qualifying third-party Android app stores in the United States could begin onboarding to its Third-party App Store on Play Program on July 15, 2026. That onboarding date preceded the July 22 deadline identified in the appellate proceedings. The program is not a statement that all rival stores have qualified, that every Play app is available through them, or that rival stores receive equal placement in Play. Google’s developer policy update describes the current program and the parties’ requested revised order. The docket for Google’s Supreme Court petition tracks the separate review proceeding.
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What the changes could mean for Android users
- Users may see more ways to find or install app marketplaces and more payment options within apps, depending on which stores and developers participate.
- Alternative billing could lower a developer’s costs, but it does not guarantee lower prices: payment processing, fraud prevention, support, taxes, and other expenses also matter.
- Apps from a third-party store may not have undergone Google Play’s normal review. Google’s safeguards may reduce risk, but no review system can eliminate it.
- Using several stores can complicate updates, refunds, subscriptions, and support. Two versions of an app may have different update histories or policies, and an app license may not transfer between stores.
Catalog access is not the same as Google approving a rival store or guaranteeing that every app can be redistributed. Nor does legal access ensure that users will adopt a store, that it will have a complete catalog, or that it will provide Play-equivalent protections. The described remedies and Google program concern the U.S. Android market; they should not be assumed to determine app-store rules in other countries.
What developers and rival stores should weigh
For developers
Developers may have more options for billing, steering users to payment choices, and reaching customers through rival stores. Those options can also mean supporting separate storefronts, payment integrations, update channels, compliance obligations, and customer-support workflows. Alternative billing does not guarantee net savings: processing, fraud, tax, integration, and support costs can offset some or all of the difference. A developer’s access to a marketplace may depend on that store’s eligibility, Google’s technical requirements, device arrangements, and geography.
For rival app stores
Catalog access is a starting point, not a ready-made business. A store still needs users and developer participation, reliable app inventory, malware screening, developer verification, abuse response, privacy and copyright compliance, payment operations, and customer support. Google’s reasonable technical and security requirements remain relevant, and access does not promise prominent placement or unrestricted redistribution of every app.
What remains unsettled
The Supreme Court stay denial resolved the emergency request, not every question about the underlying judgment. The Supreme Court petition, the district court’s consideration of the requested revised injunction, and the practical scope of catalog access remain distinct parts of the story. How many stores qualify, what safeguards and cost-based fees are applied, and whether developers and users adopt alternative stores or billing will determine the real-world effect.
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