The Play Store is facing a revolution, a major taboo has fallen in the USA. Will we benefit from it here too?

Google is launching the historic Play Catalog Access program on its home turf, opening its Play Store to competition after losing a lawsuit to Epic Games. Not only Epic itself, but also giants like Microsoft or Amazon, can now enter the largest Android app store. What is the current situation here and what exactly does this American revolution entail?

Play Store faces a turning point in the dispute with Epic

Based on a preliminary injunction by a federal court in the dispute with Epic Games, Google will launch the so-called “Play Catalog Access Program” starting July 22. This will not only allow for the simple download of competing app stores directly from the Play Store. The court went much further in its preliminary injunction, obliging Google to make the complete catalog of apps and games in the Play Store available to competing stores.

Alternative stores will thus be able to offer the same Android applications as Google Play, with the final download and transactions taking place in the background through Google’s infrastructure. However, developers themselves have the option to prohibit the display of their applications in alternative stores. Google’s rules are set so that the owner of each alternative store must pay an initial fee of 5,000 dollars and pass a security check. After that, fees are set at another 5,000 dollars each year. Alternative stores must then be open to all developers and the rate of malicious software installation in them must not exceed 1% of all installations.

How is Europe doing?

This US court decision applies exclusively to the USA, and in the rest of the world, including the EU, nothing is currently changing. However, within the EU, the situation for alternative Android stores has long been significantly simpler. Based on the DMA (Digital Markets Act), users are allowed so-called “sideloading”, which means manual installation of .apk files, including alternative stores.

Also, some manufacturers, such as Xiaomi, Oppo, or Samsung, can pre-install an alternative app store on their phones here. Looser rules also apply in that app developers can offer alternative payment methods and not just strictly through Google Play. Similarly, developers in these applications can link to their own websites, for example, where they can offer the same service or subscription at a lower price than through Google Play.

According to available information, at least for now, the European Commission is not preparing any similar decision as in the USA. However, the entry of alternative stores into the Play Store and the sharing of applications across stores sounds like another step towards a more open Android and the fight against monopoly, which the European Commission has long been leading. For users, it would mean a much easier and, above all, safer way to alternatives to Google Play. Let’s wait and see if we will also experience similar convenience under the DMA.

Do you use any alternative app store on Android?

Sources: 9to5google.com, AndroidHeadlines.com