The claim is led by consumer advocate Liz Coll on behalf of about 20 million consumers who bought apps through the Play Store. Google is contesting the case and says the Play Store faces strong competition. The trial follows similar mass claims against Apple’s App Store and Sony’s PlayStation Store, both of which center on commissions of up to 30 percent.
Google has already made concessions on this front. In March, it reached a worldwide settlement with Epic Games that expanded billing options and cut developer fees. Last month, Google settled another lawsuit brought on behalf of app developers for 260 million pounds without admitting liability. The Coll claim tests whether those concessions go far enough to satisfy UK competition law.
The UK has become a central venue for app-store litigation, with the Competition Appeal Tribunal now hosting parallel cases against the three major platform operators. Alphabet shares were unmoved, up 0.37 percent to $347.76 ($4.18 trillion market cap), suggesting investors see the 1 billion pound exposure as manageable relative to the company’s scale.