Google accuses Microsoft of wanting to “free-ride” on Play Store’s success amid Epic Games legal battle

• A Google spokesperson claimed Microsoft is ignoring “very real security concerns”
• Microsoft’s amicus brief supports Epic Games in its battle against Google

Microsoft has backed Epic Games in its court case against Google, having filed an amicus brief on November 1st in opposition to the search engine giant.

While not involved in the ongoing court battle itself, Microsoft hopes to support Epic Games’ efforts to open mobile apps and games in the US.

“This case presents important antitrust issues arising from the explosion in mobile computing,” Microsoft stated in the brief. “Microsoft brings a unique and balanced perspective to the legal, economic, and technological issues that Google raises in its motion.”

Google hasn’t taken Microsoft’s statement silently. It responded with its own filing, accusing Microsoft of wanting free access to Google Play users and services.

A Google spokesperson told us: “Microsoft has always been able to offer their Android users the ability to play and purchase Xbox games directly from their app – they’ve simply chosen not to. The court’s order and rush to force its implementation threaten Google Play’s ability to provide a safe and secure experience.

“Microsoft, like Epic, are ignoring these very real security concerns. We remain focused on supporting an ecosystem that works for everyone, not just two of the largest game companies.”

“Significant” security concerns?

As of November 1st, Google is no longer allowed to block rival app stores from being preinstalled on mobile devices through deals with manufacturers or carriers in the US. This already means some level of opening up Android devices to competitors is taking place.

However, Google is appealing the court’s decision, and Judge James Donato gave the conglomerate something of a reprieve by allowing it to continue enforcing developers to use the Google Play billing service, at least for the time being. The original ruling would have stopped this too, but it has been paused for now.

And now that Google is appealing, Microsoft is allying itself with Epic Games.

In Google’s filing, the conglomerate claimed: “Microsoft’s amicus brief says the quiet part out loud: it wants access to Play’s services and users for free, starting this holiday season. Microsoft Amicus Br. 9. But nothing stops Microsoft from launching its own Xbox store with its own payment platform on Android today.

“Microsoft could also immediately distribute apps through Play, but wants to free-ride on Play’s success instead. Microsoft’s unsubstantiated, ‘trust us’ security arguments do not seriously reckon with the injunction’s actual heightened security risks to hundreds of millions of Play users.”

However, Microsoft believes Google’s security concerns are not “significant” because if they were, “then Google has had every reason to address them already – and it has”.

Microsoft added in its filing: “If those risks have not manifested to date, that strongly supports the conclusion that such risks are manageable.”