Epic Games takes Google and Samsung to court in ‘auto blocker’ collusion case
Contributor since / Followers
Hiroshi Watanabe
Epic Games is filing a lawsuit against Google (GOOG) and Samsung over what it says to be “coordinated efforts to block competition” in app distribution on Samsung devices, the video game company said in a blogpost on its website Monday.
The Fortnite game owner alleges that Samsung’s Auto Blocker, which is turned on by default, makes Google Play Store the only viable way to get apps on Samsung devices, blocking every other store from competing on a level playing field.
“Our litigation alleges that Samsung’s recent implementation of the Auto Blocker feature was intentionally crafted in coordination with Google… Auto Blocker defaulting to “on” requires an exceptionally onerous 21-step process to download an app outside of the Google Play Store or the Samsung Galaxy Store, mirroring Google’s “Unknown Sources” process with multiple steps and scare screens,” the company said.
“Auto Blocker is the first time that Samsung has imposed additional friction on consumers who try to get apps outside of the Google Play Store or the Samsung Galaxy Store… We are asking the court to prohibit Samsung’s and Google’s anti-competitive and unfair conduct and mandate that Samsung eliminate the Auto Blocker by default and enable competition,” the company added.