The developer of Fortnite is set to pursue its allegations in court on Monday that Google illegally maintains a monopoly through its regulation of app developers on Android phones.

Fortnite publisher Epic Games will appear in court on Monday in a much-anticipated trial with the search giant over its control of Android's application platform. The Android store for apps, Google Play, charges an additional fee to app developers whenever a user pays for a purchase within an app. This fee is known as the "Google tax" and often costs the developer up to 30% of their initial fees. Epic alleges that this fee is "anticompetitive" since Google and Apple control the vast majority of app platforms.

SAM BANKMAN-FRIED COURTROOM SKETCH ARTIST NAVIGATING POPULARITY AND 'A LOT OF HATERS'

While a court ruled mostly in favor of Apple in a similar case in 2021, Epic now has a second chance, this time against Google.

"Google has relegated its motto to nearly an afterthought and is using its size to do evil upon competitors, innovators, customers, and users in a slew of markets it has grown to monopolize," Epic wrote in its initial 2020 lawsuit.

Epic claims that Google Play rules have created an illegal monopoly by controlling who can buy what apps on an Android device. It also alleges that Google requiring app developers to use its software for acquisitions is making it impossible for other payment processor competitors to keep up.

Google maintains that allowing developers such as Epic to make in-app sales without Android's regulations or the fee would make Android devices less safe because it means that users could download software from less trustworthy sources.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

In August 2020, Epic Games decided to allow Fortnite players to save money by purchasing V-Bucks, the in-game currency, through Epic Games's website. That decision would cut Apple and Google out as the middlemen and not require Epic Games to pay Apple and Google a 30% fee on the transaction. The two Big Tech giants retaliated by booting Fortnite from its App Store. Epic Games filed a suit against both companies, alleging they were maintaining an "absolute monopoly."

A court initially ruled in 2021 that Apple had not breached antitrust law because Epic Games had originally alleged but that the company had violated California's Unfair Competition Law and had to amend the App Store to fix it. The 9th Circuit upheld both decisions in April 2023. Apple and Epic are now waiting to see if the Supreme Court will weigh in on the decision.