Connecticut Attorney General William Tong and his New York counterpart Letitia James are part of a bipartisan group of attorneys general announcing a $700 million agreement with Google in their lawsuit about the search engine’s anticompetitive conduct with the Google Play Store.
Under the terms of the agreement, Google will pay $630 million in restitution, minus costs and fees, to consumers who made purchases on the Google Play Store between August 2016 and September 2023 and were harmed by Google’s anticompetitive practices. Google will pay the states an additional $70 million for their sovereign claims. The attorneys general sued Google in 2021 alleging that Google unlawfully monopolized the market Android app distribution and in-app payment processing.
“Today’s settlement is a loud and clear message to Big Tech — attorneys general across the country are unified, and we are prepared to use the full weight of our collective authority to ensure free and fair access to the digital marketplace,” said Tong, adding this was “the first resolution in a series of enforcement actions attorneys general are taking against Google over its illegal monopoly practices and anticompetitive exclusionary contracts and conduct. I expect 2024 will be an active and aggressive year for attorneys general taking on Big Tech.”
“No company, no matter how large or powerful, is allowed to corner a market and use its influence to overcharge consumers and smother competition,” said James. “For too long, Google abused its market share to unfairly raise prices and block developers from selling products in other app stores. Under this agreement, New Yorkers and millions of consumers nationwide will get money back after being overcharged for Google’s app store services.”
The lawsuit was brought by the attorneys general of all 50 states, the District of Columbia and the territories of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
