Google Faces $680 Million in UK and US Legal Hits

Google faces two major legal setbacks in the United Kingdom and the United States. In London, the company agreed to pay £260 million to settle a class-action lawsuit brought by app developers who alleged Google abused its market dominance by imposing unfair commissions and blocking alternative distribution channels. Of the settlement, £160 million is designated for developers who used the Play Store between August 2018 and July 2026, with £100 million covering legal fees. The deal awaits approval from the Competition Appeal Tribunal in September and involves no admission of liability or changes to Google's commission structure.

Simultaneously, a federal jury in San Francisco ordered Google to pay $425 million for violating user privacy. The jury found that between July 2016 and September 2024, Google collected data from 98 million users and 174 million devices even after they disabled the Web & App Activity tracking feature. Plaintiffs alleged the company collected and sold data from third-party apps like Uber and Instagram via its analytics services. While the jury awarded compensatory damages, it found no evidence of malice to justify the $31 billion in punitive damages sought by plaintiffs. Google intends to appeal the verdict, asserting that the data was nonpersonal and pseudonymous.