From 22 July 2026, Google began providing third-party Android app stores in the United States with access to the Google Play catalogue under the Play Catalog Access programme. The change is being introduced in compliance with the court order issued in the Epic Games v Google case.
The legal dispute between Epic Games and Google began in 2020 and concerned Google Play Store’s monopolistic position and the mandatory 30% commission charged on in-app sales. In December 2023, the jury found in favour of Epic Games, and in October 2024, Judge James Donato issued a permanent injunction requiring Google to open the Play Store catalogue to third-party stores and prohibiting exclusive agreements. In August 2025, the Ninth Circuit upheld both the verdict and the permanent injunction, while the Supreme Court declined to block it.
The parties attempted to replace the terms of the permanent injunction with a negotiated settlement and, in March 2026, submitted an amended version of the agreement to the court. However, on 15 July 2026, Google and Epic jointly withdrew the document because the court was not prepared to approve it. As a result, the programme is being launched in compliance with the original injunction issued by Judge Donato in 2024.
The Play Catalog Access programme was officially launched on 22 July 2026. Information from the pages of apps and games distributed in the United States, including their names, icons, descriptions, screenshots and videos, is automatically made available to registered third-party app stores in the United States.
When an app is downloaded through a third-party store, the download is processed through Google Play’s infrastructure on the same terms as a direct download from Google Play. Google Play’s commission remains applicable.
A developer may restrict its apps’ participation in the programme through Play Console, under the “Catalog settings” subsection of the “Settings” section.
Three options are available:
If a developer has not selected any of these options, Google will, by default, publish its listings in third-party stores from 22 July 2026.
Participation is subject to fees for third-party stores: a one-off fee of USD 5,000 for the security review conducted during onboarding and an annual fee of USD 5,000 to maintain access to the catalogue.
A store may provide access to the catalogue only to users in the United States.
Google Play’s rules, including those relating to prohibited content and the protection of intellectual property, do not apply to third-party app stores. Each registered store may have its own rules and complaint-handling procedures.
Formally, each participant in the programme must maintain a publicly accessible page containing information on its procedure for resolving intellectual property disputes, as well as a public link to its intellectual property rules, which must be similar to those of Google Play. However, the actual quality and speed with which this obligation is fulfilled will depend on each individual store.
| Check whether its listing may automatically appear in third-party stores and what additional risks this may create for the protection of your intellectual property. |
The change directly affects companies that have previously encountered the cloning of their mobile apps and games or the unauthorised copying of their app listings.
Submitting a complaint solely to Google Play is no longer a sufficient protective measure, as a copy of an app that infringes third-party rights may now be distributed simultaneously through several independent platforms, each with different rules and complaint-handling timeframes.
The REVERA Arbitration & IT Disputes team is ready to assess the risks that the launch of Play Catalog Access may create for your product or app store and to adapt your intellectual property protection strategy to reflect the new app distribution channels.
Author: Kamal Tserakhau, Aliaksandr Struzhko, Hleb Shumilau and Stanislav Tarmola
To provide with legal comment and insights, please contact the PR Department: PR _revera@revera.legal
