Epic suing Samsung and Google for allegedly blocking third-party app distribution

Epic Games is suing Google and Samsung over what it claims are “coordinated efforts” to block third-party app distribution on Samsung devices.

The Fortnite developer feels Samsung’s implementation of an ‘Auto Blocker’ feature prevents other marketplaces such as the Epic Games Store from “competing on a level playing field.”

Epic states Auto Blocker was introduced as an opt-in feature that prevents users from installing software from outside the Google Play Store. It claims Auto Blocker has since been turned into a default setting that can only be circumvented by following an “exceptionally onerous 21 step process.”

The company has posted a step-by-step walkthrough of that process on its website and wants the United States District Court in California to mandate that Samsung remove Auto Blocker as a default setting on its devices.

Epic says its previous legal battle with Google shows the company has a “long history of inducing Samsung into anticompetitive dealings,” and claimed “Google is in the habit of paying OEMs billions to prevent competition.”

“During the Epic v Google trial there was exhaustive and detailed evidence of Google’s schemes to pay Samsung to not compete with the Google Play Store and to block other app stores from trying to compete,” reads a statement from Epic.

Epic is requesting a jury trial and claims the behavior of Google and Samsung is hurting developers and consumers.

“Our litigation alleges that Samsung’s recent implementation of the Auto Blocker feature was intentionally crafted in coordination with Google to preemptively undermine the U.S. District Court’s remedy following the jury’s verdict in Epic’s case against Google. The jury found that Google’s app store practices are illegal, including the unlawful agreements Google enters into with phone manufacturers such as Samsung,” continues the statement.

“Allowing this coordinated illegal anticompetitive dealing to proceed hurts developers and consumers and undermines both the jury’s verdict and regulatory and legislative progress around the world.”

You can learn more about the lawsuit (and read the full complaint) over on the Epic Games website.