Five things Google has to do after $700m payout to Android users
Google revealed it was making five big commitments in the aftermath of settling a huge lawsuit that'll see it pay out a massive $700 million (£550 million).
Dozens of states in the USA took on the tech giant last year, launching a significant lawsuit over what was described as an abuse of power by Google.
It was all to do with Android users and the Google Play Store, with the vast majority of people using that OS also opting to shop through Google's app, movies, and games store.
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But Google had been taking a pretty big chunk of every payment that was being processed via the Play Store. Fees of between 15% and 30% were being applied to every transaction by Google.
Before the case truly got going, Google settled the case outside of court, offering up a huge $700m settlement figure.
Divided between Android users and the American states behind the lawsuit, some $630m is earmarked for those with the phones and $70m for the states.
With around 127 million Americans entitled to a claim, it means the average compensation will only be $4.41 with a peak of $17.
"This settlement builds on Android's choice and flexibility, maintains strong security protections, and retains Google’s ability to compete with other OS makers, and invest in the Android ecosystem for users and developers," Google said after the settlement was agreed.
As part of the settlement, the California-based firm agreed to five big things going forward.
Giving Android users a choice
Google said it remained committed to app stores other than the Play Store being installed on Android devices.
"We have always allowed alternative app stores to be preloaded onto Android devices and for users to download alternative app stores directly. In fact, most Android devices ship with two or more app stores preloaded," it said.
"The settlement with the attorneys general makes clear that OEMs can continue to provide users with options out of the box to use Play or another app store.
"We recently implemented features in Android 14 that will make third-party app stores work even better for users and let third-party app stores update apps more easily."
Sideloading
This is a focus on allowing Android users to be able to install apps directly from a developer, therefore bypassing the need for an app store.
Google said: "Unlike on iOS, Android users have the option to sideload apps, meaning they can download directly from a developer’s website without going through an app store like Google Play.
"While we maintain it is critical to our safety efforts to inform users that sideloading on mobile could come with unique risks, as part of our settlement we will be further simplifying the sideloading process and updating the language that informs users about these potential risks of downloading apps directly from the web for the first time."
Choosing how to bill
Developers can now use other payment systems outside of Google's own options.
"App and game developers will be able to implement an alternative billing option alongside Google Play’s billing system for their US users who can then choose which option to use when making in-app purchases," Google said.
"We have been piloting user choice billing in the US for over a year and will now expand this option further."
Pricing
App developers can now give Android users different pricing options within the Google Play app when buying something.
Google said: "We have always given developers more ways to interact with their customers than iOS and other operating systems. For example, Google Play allows developers to communicate freely with their customers outside the app about subscription offers or lower-cost options available on a rival app store or the developer’s website.
"This openness has spurred competition and benefited consumers and developers. As part of user choice billing, which we’re expanding with today’s settlement announcement, developers are also able to show different pricing options within the app when a user makes a digital purchase."
Settlement fund
The $700m fund is to be supplied to the courts to then distribute to Android users and states.
The tech company said: "Google will pay $630 million into a settlement fund to be distributed for the benefit of consumers according to a Court-approved plan and $70 million into a fund that will be used by the states."
Tom Earnshaw