Epic is suing Google — again — and now Samsung too

Photo illustration of Tim Sweeney in front of Google and Epic logos. — Photo illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photo by Philip Pacheco, Getty Images

Four years after Epic sued Google for running an illegal app store monopoly — a case it won this past December — Epic is suing again. The Fortnite game developer has filed a second antitrust lawsuit against Google, and now additionally Samsung, accusing them of illegally conspiring to undermine third-party app stores.

The lawsuit revolves around Samsung’s “Auto Blocker” feature, which now comes turned-on-by-default on new Samsung phones. While it’s turned on, it automatically keeps users from installing apps unless they come from “authorized sources” — namely, Google and Samsung’s app stores. Epic claims there’s no process for any rival store to become “authorized.”

When Epic filed its original lawsuits against Google and Apple in...

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