Lawsuit: Online Dating Giant Match Held ‘Hostage’ by Google’s App Store Monopoly

Match Group, the company behind popular dating apps like Tinder and OkCupid, is suing Google, accusing the company of holding it hostage with its monopolistic stranglehold on the Android app store. The company’s lawsuit states: “Ten years ago, Match Group was Google’s partner. We are now its hostage. Blinded by the possibility of getting an ever-greater cut of the billions of dollars users spend each year on Android apps, Google set out to monopolize the market for how users pay for their Android apps.”

Bloomberg reports that Match Group, the owners of dating apps like Tinder and OkCupid, have accused Google in a lawsuit of acting as a monopolist with its app store billing rules. Match Group alleges that Google has violated federal and state laws and abused its power by requiring app developers to use its billing system on Android devices.

In a complaint filed this week in northern California federal court, Match Gorup Inc stated: “Ten years ago, Match Group was Google’s partner. We are now its hostage. Blinded by the possibility of getting an ever-greater cut of the billions of dollars users spend each year on Android apps, Google set out to monopolize the market for how users pay for their Android apps.”

Google has faced pushback and legal scrutiny over its commission fees and billing restrictions for its Google Play Store, as has Apple and its iOS App Store. Many developers have criticized the Silicon Valley giants for forcing them to use their payment processors and charging high commission fees for purchases.

Google has reportedly halved its 30 percent transaction fee for some apps in response to pressure, but the company also stated plans to tighten its rules requiring the use of its billing system for in-app purchases. Google gave developers a deadline of June 1 to comply or be removed from the Play Store.

Google announced in March that it would be letting select apps offer their own billing service instead of Google’s payment processor. Match Group is alleging that they attempted to avail of this new “user billing” feature but Google refused.

A Google spokesperson commented: “This is just a continuation of Match Group’s self-interested campaign to avoid paying for the significant value they receive from the mobile platforms they’ve built their business on. Like any business, we charge for our services, and like any responsible platform, we protect users against fraud and abuse in apps.”

Read more at Bloomberg here.

Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan or contact via secure email at the address lucasnolan@protonmail.com