Google isn’t waiting for a settlement — the 30 percent Android app store fee is dead
TL;DR
Google is proactively implementing changes to its Android app store fees and policies globally, ahead of a settlement approval. It will reduce fees to 20% or less in key regions by June 30th and introduce a 'Registered App Stores' program by year-end.
In November, Epic and Google jointly proposed a settlement that would change Android's fate globally without cracking open Google's Android monopoly quite the way it otherwise might. Today, Google has decided it's not waiting for that settlement to be approved: it's moving forward with many of its proposed changes right now, rolling them out globally through 2027 - and we spoke to the heads of Android and Epic Games about the changes.
By June 30th, Google writes, it will lower most app store fees in the US, UK, and European Economic Area to 20 percent or less, down from 30 percent. By the end of the year, it will launch a "Registered App St …