Breaking: Epic Games sues Samsung, Google over a One UI feature in the US

Epic Games suing Samsung and Google over One UI’s Auto Blocker feature. The company alleges that the default activation of One UI’s Auto Blocker feature is an illegal conspiracy to help Google maintain its dominance in the Android app market.

Samsung has dismissed claims made by Epic Games, stating that the Auto Blocker feature is designed for user security and privacy. It doesn’t have any motive to benefit Google to maintain its monopoly as it can be easily disabled by the user for sideloading.

“It’s about unfair competition by misleading users into thinking competitors’ products are inferior to the company’s products themselves,” Epic Chief Executive Tim Sweeney told reporters.

Epic Games previously won a lawsuit against Google over antitrust issues in the app market. The company argues that Samsung’s pre-enabled Auto Blocker circumvents the remedies ordered by the US district court following the jury’s verdict.

“The features integrated into its devices are designed in accordance with Samsung’s core principles of security, privacy, and user control, and we remain fully committed to safeguarding users’ personal data,” Samsung said in the statement.

Epic Games plans to initiate the lawsuit in the US and is considering legal options or regulatory policy measures in Korea. Epic wants Samsung to stop shipping Auto Blocker enabled or adopt a reasonable whitelisting process.

In late 2023, Samsung debuted the Auto Blocker as a new security feature. With the One UI 6.1 update, the company enabled it by default. It restricts app installation from sources other than Google’s Play Store or its own Galaxy Store.