Google deemed it impossible to revise Google Play fees as it would have a large impact on revenue.

Multiple lawsuits have been filed regarding the app store 'Google Play.' Documents filed in a lawsuit between Fortnite developer Epic Games and Google reveal that more than two years ago, as part of a Google Play business review project, Google decided to revise its fees and increase revenue. It turns out that the decision was made that it was impossible because of the large impact it would have on

Google Rejected Play Store Fee Changes for Hit on Sales, Epic Lawsuit Shows - Bloomberg

According to documents, the plan to overhaul Google Play's business is called ' Project Everest .'

For Project Everest, a method was considered in which fees would be collected from developers at different times, such as when the app is published, when the user downloads it, when it is updated, when it is introduced, etc., but if it were to switch to this method. , losses for apps range from $1 billion (about 142 billion yen) to $2 billion (about 285 billion yen), and losses for games range from $6 billion (about 854 billion yen) to $9 billion (about 1.28 trillion yen). The calculation result was that it would be.

For this reason, Project Everest recommended a method that would allow app developers to process payments themselves. In this case, the decrease in sales will be between $250,000 (about 35.6 billion yen) to $1.3 billion (about 185 billion yen).

In addition to Epic Games, Google has been sued by multiple states alleging that Google Play violates antitrust laws. This lawsuit was settled on December 19, 2023, with Google paying $700 million (approximately 100 billion yen) and allowing users to choose payment systems other than Google Play. The content is similar to Everest's recommendation method, and it has been pointed out that Google actually reached this conclusion more than two years ago.

In addition, on December 11, 2023, the court ruled in favor of Epic Games' lawsuit, and Google is considering an appeal.