Google has accused the United States Department of Justice of risking “consumers’ privacy and security.”
This week, Judge Amit Mehta — who declared the tech giant to be operating an illegal monopoly after the Epic vs. Google lawsuit last year — issued a final ruling that the company’s operating system should be open to third-party app stores for three years.
Google has made it clear they will appeal the decision, and Lee-Anne Mulholland, the company’s vice president of regulatory affairs, has criticized the decision.
“These changes would put consumers’ privacy and security at risk, make it harder for developers to promote their apps, and reduce competition on devices,” she stated in a post.
“Ultimately, while these changes presumably satisfy Epic, they will cause a range of unintended consequences that will harm American consumers, developers and device makers,” she continued.
She gave the example of a ruling made in the Epic Games vs Apple lawsuit, which saw the iPhone maker not declared a monopoly, despite being told to open iOS to third-party payment mechanisms.
Mulholland argued that Android is — unlike iOS — an open platform that allows for multiple app stores.
With its appeal, Google will argue that itself and Apple are constantly competing for app developers and consumers in an open market.
“Android has helped expand choice, reduce prices and democratize access to smartphones and apps. The initial decision and today’s Epic-requested changes put that at risk and undercut Android’s ability to compete with Apple’s iOS,” Mulholland added.
