Washingtonian Google Play Store users eligible for share of $700 million as a result of AG Ferguson lawsuit

Washingtonian Google Play Store users eligible for share of $700 million as a result of AG Ferguson lawsuit. Lawsuit, filed in 2021, accused Google of burying competition to its app store.

OLYMPIA — Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced that, as a result of his multistate antitrust lawsuit against Google, Washington Google Play Store users are eligible for a share of a $700 million nationwide resolution against the global technology giant.

The lawsuit accused Google of using anticompetitive practices to insulate its app distribution service, Google Play Store, from competition — forcing Android app developers to raise app prices for users in order to pay Google’s exorbitant fees. These practices targeted all levels of the smartphone ecosystem, including device manufacturers, network operators and app developers.

Each eligible consumer will receive at least $2, with additional payments depending on how much they spent in the Play Store between August of 2016 and September of 2023. An estimated 2.9 million Washingtonians have Android phones, though only those who paid for apps through the Play Store, or paid for in-app purchases, are eligible.

Washingtonians will receive an estimated $10.6 million in reimbursements for their overpayments all together.

“When companies illegally act like monopolies, everyone loses out on the benefits of healthy competition,” Ferguson said. “People face higher prices and fewer choices. Smaller businesses are forced out of the market — or have no way into it in the first place. 

"This resolution stops Google from rigging the system and creates a more level playing field. We will continue to fight for a competitive marketplace that increases consumer choice, improves affordability and provides a level playing field for business.”

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