Google has just 14 days to follow major court-ordered changes to the Play Store, unless it wins an emergency delay.
After losing an antitrust case to Epic Games, Google must open its Play Store to more competition and give developers more freedom.
Google says the sudden changes could affect millions of users and over 500,000 developers, disrupting Android’s business model.
Developers will no longer be forced to use Google Play Billing. They can now offer other ways to accept payments inside their apps.
App developers can now share links to external websites and downloads outside the Play Store, right from their app pages.
Google can’t offer money or perks to phone brands or carriers in exchange for preinstalling Google Play or apps exclusively.
Google can’t control pricing based on whether its billing system is used. Devs are free to set their own pricing strategies.
A Technical Committee with members from both Google and Epic will handle tech disputes as the changes roll out.
Google warns these new rules could lead to security risks, like malware from third-party app links and less secure payments.
Google has filed an emergency appeal. If it fails, major Play Store changes will begin in just 2 weeks, reshaping Android forever.