Epic Games Inc. today sued Google LLC and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. over the Auto Block feature in Samsung’s Android devices.
The complaint is the second that the video game maker has brought against Google in recent years. The previous lawsuit, which dates back to 2020, ended last year with a jury verdict against the search giant. In its latest complaint, Epic charges that Samsung’s Auto Block feature is meant to mitigate the impact of last year’s jury verdict.
Epic’s original 2020 lawsuit against Google was one of two that it submitted that year. The other complaint focused on Apple Inc. and its App Store. In the lawsuits, Epic charged that the two tech giants breached antitrust laws in the mobile app market.
The video game maker took issue with the fact that Apple and Google applied a fee of up to 30% on in-app purchases. Additionally, the companies limited developers’ ability to use competing payment processing that charge lower commissions. Those restrictions affect Epic because it sells an iOS version of its flagship video game, Fortnite, and until 2020 offered an Android client as well.
Epic has scored victories in both cases. Last year, a judge ordered Apple to let iOS apps link to third-party payment services. Epic’s lawsuit against Google, meanwhile, ended with a jury verdict that found the search giant maintains a monopoly in the app distribution and in-app payment processing segments.
A judge will decide how Google’s business practices should be remedied later this year. According to The Verge, the search giant could be ordered to permit the distribution of third-party app stores via the Play Store. In its new lawsuit against Google and Samsung, Epic alleges that the latter company’s Auto Lock feature is an attempt to “undermine” the remedies that are expected to be issued in the Google monopoly case.
Auto Block is a cybersecurity setting in Samsung devices that promises to protect users from malicious apps. When enabled, the feature blocks downloads from sources other than Google’s Play Store and the Samsung Galaxy Store. According to Epic, disabling Auto Block is a time-consuming process that involves more than a dozen steps.
The feature was off by default when Samsung rolled it out last year. This past June, the electronics giant turned Auto Block into an opt-out feature. Epic says that this change marked the first time “Samsung has imposed additional friction on consumers who try to get apps outside of the Google Play Store or the Samsung Galaxy Store.”
The video game maker filed its latest lawsuit with the District Court for the Northern District of California. Epic is seeking a jury verdict ordering Google and Samsung to disable Auto Block by default in the latter company’s devices.
Google said in a statement that “this is a meritless lawsuit. Android device makers are free to take their own steps to keep their users safe and secure.”
A Samsung spokesperson stated that “contrary to Epic Game’s assertions, Samsung actively fosters market competition, enhances consumer choice, and conducts its operations fairly. The features integrated into our devices are designed in accordance with Samsung’s core principles of security, privacy, and user control, and we remain fully committed to safeguarding users’ personal data.”