Google and Match Group Battle in Court Over Antitrust Issue

Google has filed a new lawsuit in response to dating app developer Match Group's antitrust case, calling the group's initial complaint a "cynical attempt" to abuse Google Play's distribution system and other resources in an effort to avoid paying Google's fees.

Following Match's lawsuit against Google in May over an alleged monopoly of power in Android app payments, the two tech companies have been engaged in a legal battle ever since. 

Match is the company behind popular dating apps including Tinder, Match, OkCupid, Plenty of Fish, Hinge, and others, asserts that Google controls too much of the Google Play app store and employs anticompetitive practices to keep a stranglehold on that environment.

Google and Match reached a short-term agreement earlier this year over how well they would cooperate while the case was in progress. According to Match, Google promised that it would neither remove nor prohibit its dating apps from Google Play because they accept alternative payment methods. Match also promised to put up to $40 million into an escrow account to pay for Google's fees until the court decided the outcome.

In this ongoing litigation, Google has now submitted a counterclaim, claiming that Match has misled the court by claiming that Google just pays the payment processor costs for the apps that are distributed across its platform.

Google said the claim being made by Match Group that Google Play exclusively offers payment processing is untrue. It added that with the help of Google Play's capabilities and "global distribution platform", Match Group has been able to flourish and create a strong user network that is essential for its apps. 

The tech giant added that Match Group wants to harness Google's significant platform investments to gain free access to Google Play consumers around the world. Google continues by touting the discoverability enabled by the Play Store and the tools it offers to developers, such as the free software that enables developers build apps, testing and monitoring tools, and infrastructure for digital payments.

‘Match Group expands background checks to additional apps’

As singles seek for more in-person meets, Match Group is expanding its collaboration with background check company Garbo to launch the safety feature of two more of its dating apps.

The business revealed on Tuesday that users of its Stir app for single parents and its namesake app, which is well-liked among serious daters, will have access to screening prospective partners through the applications.

Since making an undisclosed investment in the company in 2021, Match Group has collaborated with Garbo, a nonprofit background screening service that displays public records such as arrests, convictions, and sex offender registry data. At the time, Match Group declared its intention to increase the safety measures in its portfolio.