Tech Giant To Pay $90 Million To Settle A Legal Fight With App Developers

The app developer battle with Google has been settled for $90 million by Alphabet Inc.'s Google. According to a court filing, the dispute centered around money they earned from creating apps for Android smartphones and enticing users to make in-app purchases.

In a lawsuit filed in federal court in San Francisco, the app developers accused Google of closing the app ecosystem and shunting most payments through its Google Play billing system with a default service fee of 30% using agreements with phone makers, technical barriers, and revenue sharing agreements.

As part of the proposed settlement, Google said in a blog post it would put $90 million in a fund to support app developers who made $2 million or less in annual revenue from 2016-2021.

"A vast majority of U.S. developers who earned revenue through Google Play will be eligible to receive money from this fund if they choose," Google said in the blog post.

Google said it would also continue to charge a 15% commission to developers who make $1 million or less annually from the Google Play Store. It started doing this in 2021.

The court must approve the proposed settlement.

Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, which represented the plaintiffs, estimates that 48,000 app developers were eligible for the $90 million funds, and the minimum payout is $250.

Apple Inc agreed in a class action last year to loosen App Store restrictions on small developers. It also agreed to pay $100 million.