Cary’s Epic Games sues Google again — and this time Samsung too. Here’s why.

While a federal judge weighs the corrective steps Google must take to remove anticompetitive barriers to its Play Store, Cary’s Epic Games has accused the internet search giant of finding a new way to protect its Android app store monopoly.

In a complaint filed Monday in the Northern District of California, the North Carolina video game maker charged Google and Samsung of colluding to create an obstacle for Android owners to use third-party app stores like the Epic Games Store. Epic Games’ latest lawsuit focuses on a Samsung program called Auto Blocker, which stops users from downloading apps from sources other than the Google Play Store or Samsung Galaxy Store.

Auto Blocker considers both the Play Store and Galaxy Store authorized platforms, yet Epic contends the latter is not legitimate competition, writing that Samsung’s Galaxy Store “is the source of only approximately 1% of Android app downloads.”

“Auto Blocker is virtually guaranteed to entrench Google’s dominance over Android App Distribution, preventing third-party app stores, such as the Epic Games Store, from reaching any sizable audience on Android,” wrote Epic Games, which is the creator of the popular game Fortnite. In its complaint, Epic said Fortnite currently has 800 million user accounts.

Samsung introduced Auto Blocker in the fall of 2023 as a security feature users had to opt into. Then on July 11, around six months after a jury found Google guilty of violating antitrust law by making deals to stifle competition to its Play Store, Samsung switched Auto Block to run automatically on devices. Android users who try to download applications from sources other than the Play Store or Galaxy Store see a screen that states “to keep your phone and data safe, Auto Blocker prevents the installation of unknown apps.”

Users can remove the program through their phone settings.

In a statement to The News & Observer, Samsung said it intends “to vigorously contest Epic Games’ baseless claims.” The South Korean company said Auto Blocker exists to promote user safety, noting “the features integrated into our devices are designed in accordance with Samsung’s core principles of security, privacy, and user control.”

In comments posted Monday on X , Google vice president of engineering Dave Kleidermacher said, “Epic’s latest lawsuit is a meritless and dangerous move.”

“Google did not request that Samsung create their Auto Blocker feature,” he added.

Epic’s cases with Apple and Google progress

This week’s lawsuit is not the first Epic Games has filed against Google. In August 2020, Epic cofounder and CEO Tim Sweeney orchestrated litigation against Google and Apple, arguing both used anticompetitive policies to maintain monopolies over their app stores on Androids and iPhone devices respectively. Apple and Google each charge fees ranging between 15% and 30% on digital transactions completed within apps.

Apple largely won the case Epic brought against the iPhone app store, though District Court Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled Apple could no longer prevent app developers from directing users to external payment platforms that might charge lower fees. This week, Apple asked the court to throw out this part of the decision.

Apple and Epic continue to fight over how Apple has complied with Rogers’ ruling. In January, Apple announced it would charge major U.S. App Store developers a 27% fee on sales of digital goods and services made through external payment systems. Apple called these costs “a reasonable means to account for the substantial value Apple provides developers, including in facilitating linked transactions.”

Sweeney deemed Apple’s compliance effort a travesty and challenged it in court. On Monday, Apple faced a deadline to produce 1.3 million documents in connection to its compliance plan.

Unlike Apple, Google had its initial Epic Games lawsuit decided by a nine-person jury, which in December unanimously determined Google used anticompetitive tactics around its Play Store that damaged smartphone consumers and software developers. At the time, Google said it planned to appeal the verdict once the judge presiding over the case issues his remedies.

In August, Judge James Donato said his forthcoming decision on what Google must do to correct its app store policies will include significant changes.

“We’re going to tear the barriers down, it’s just the way it’s going to happen,” Donato said. “The world that exists today is the product of monopolistic conduct. That world is changing.”