Google must allow third-party app stores on Android, Judge Rules says

• A judge has ordered Google to open up Android to compete with third-party app stores.
• The ruling is part of Epic Games' blockbuster antitrust case against Google.
• Google said it plans to appeal the ruling and ask the courts to suspend implementation of remedies.

A US judge has ruled that Google must open Andriod to third-party app stores.

Monday's ruling was one of several appeals in the landmark antitrust case brought against Google by Epic Games, the company behind the video game Fortnite.

The remedies aim to provide Android users with more options for downloading apps and paying for transactions within them.

The judge ruled that Google cannot pay companies for three years to publish apps exclusively on the Play Store or to pre-install the company's App Store on devices.

The judge also ruled that Google must allow competing app stores to access Google Play apps and that it cannot require app makers to use Google Play Billing.

The remedies are set to come into effect from November.

Shares of Google parent Alphabet fell 2.4% after the ruling.

In a statement posted online, Google said it was appealing the decision.

“The Epic ruling missed the obvious: Apple and Android are clearly competing. We will appeal and ask the courts to stay implementation of the remedies to ensure a consistent and safe experience for users and developers as the legal process continues,” the company said.

“We will continue to advocate for what is best for developers, device manufacturers and the billions of Android users around the world.”

Representatives for Epic Games did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment made outside of normal business hours.

The ruling is Google's latest setback. Last year, a jury found that Google had violated antitrust rules in its Play Store for Android systems. The jury concluded that the The tech giant had a monopoly in the Play Store for Android operating systems, which limited the reach of competitors' apps and drove up the prices for processing in-app purchases.