Updated Oct. 26, 2026, 1:21 a.m. ET: Adds the Competition Appeal Tribunal’s Sept. 18 approval of the settlement and the £200 minimum payment proposed for eligible developers.
UK app developers who sold through Google Play since 2018 stand to share £160 million after Google agreed to settle a collective claim over its store commissions. The total settlement is £260 million, with the remaining £100 million going to the lawyers, funders and insurers who brought the case.
The claim, led by Strathclyde University competition law professor Barry Rodger and funded by Bench Walk, argued that Google abused a dominant position in Android app distribution by hindering other ways to reach users and by charging an excessive commission of up to 30%. It had been valued at just over £1 billion, Reuters reported, and was headed for a 10-week trial at London’s Competition Appeal Tribunal starting Sept. 28, jointly with a separate consumer claim.
Google admits no wrongdoing. The settlement agreement says the company “believes it has strong defences to Professor Rodger’s claim.” In a statement reported by Bloomberg, Google said, “We are pleased to reach an agreement with the developers to end this litigation,” and that it remains “committed to supporting the U.K. developer community,” TechRepublic noted.
“For thousands of UK app developers, many of them small businesses, the Play Store is the only realistic route to their customers – and they had little choice but to pay Google’s commission,” Rodger said in a statement. “This settlement is a great outcome for them.” Damien Geradin, whose firm represented the class, called it “the largest settlement to date since the CAT opt out regime was launched,” and said it should get money to developers less than three years after the claim was filed.
Who qualifies
The class covers UK-domiciled developers who made Play Store app sales, or in-app and subscription sales on which Google charged commission, between Aug. 22, 2018 and July 31, 2026. What each receives depends on its qualifying sales and the commission it paid, according to the claim website, and the proposed distribution plan sets a minimum payment of £200 for each developer that submits a valid claim. Payments follow a four-month claims period and the tribunal’s sign-off on distribution.
The deal lands two months after Google began changing Play’s business model in the UK. From June 30, developers have been able to get lower service fees, use their own billing alongside Google Play’s, or send users to their websites for digital purchases, with further fee cuts through new programs starting Sept. 30. Google said the changes address concerns raised by the Competition and Markets Authority and that Android generates more than £9.9 billion a year in revenue for UK developers.
Approved: The tribunal approved the settlement as “just and reasonable” in an order dated Sept. 18, requiring Google to pay the £260 million into a payment account within 50 days, according to the approval order. Details of how developers can claim are still to come.
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