Google and Apple once discussed a “two but one” partnership between Android and iOS, according to Epic Games

New documents from the Epic vs. Google has revealed some surprising details about a private meeting between the former CEOs of Google and Apple.

Epic’s complaint against Google mentions that the two tech giants maintain a close relationship, further reducing Google’s incentive to compete, innovate, and invest in app distribution because they benefit from cooperation with “competitor” Apple.

The document reveals a 2010 meeting between Larry Page and Steve Jobs, the two companies talking about a “partnership” between Android and iOS. ” There will always be places where we compete and places where we collaborate,” Page told Jobs, reportedly amid their policy discussion on developers.

The complaint goes on to accuse Google and Apple of being ” cozy two-seller oligopolies ,” offering identical terms to developers and changing those terms in parallel instead. for actually competing with each other.

The document mentions a number of notes gathered after a meeting between Google and Apple senior executives. In it, there is a passage that reads: “Our vision is to work as if we are the same company”, indicating that the two have been very intimate with each other.

Meanwhile, the lawsuit also alleges that Google encourages smartphone manufacturers to bypass third-party app stores. According to the application, Google ran a “Premium Device Program” in 2019, giving OEMs a larger share of the revenue if they agreed to sell devices with no app store other than the Google Play store. .

Larry Page and Steve Jobs

The phone models in the program get 12% of Google’s search revenue compared to the standard 8%. Google also grants some companies like LG and Motorola between 3 and 6% of what customers have spent on the Google Play Store through their phones.

To further demonstrate the Play Store’s dominance, the complaint highlights that in May 2020, many of the world’s largest and most popular Android OEMs agreed to let Google Play monopolize most devices. their new Android device. Chinese phone makers like Oppo, Vivo and OnePlus already have about 70% of their new devices under Google’s “Premier” program, while companies like Sony (50%) and Xiaomi (40%) less committed to Google’s terms.