Bay Area

California Attorney General Announces $700 Million Multistate Settlement Agreement with Google

On Tuesday morning, in downtown San Francisco, Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that Google has agreed to a $700 million settlement with Google for monopolizing the Android application market. The multistate, bipartisan settlement is a rare victory for two sides of the political aisle that often cannot agree on much, Bonta emphasized at the conference, but they were all in fast agreement to fight for changes and restitution for the impacted consumers.

Published

1 year ago

December 26, 2023

Magaly Muñoz

California Attorney General Rob Bonta stands with his legal team at a press conference on Tuesday, December 19 to announce a $700 million settlement with Google for anti-competitive practices in their Play Store. Photo by Magaly Muñoz

By Magaly Muñoz

On Tuesday morning, in downtown San Francisco, Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that Google has agreed to a $700 million settlement with Google for monopolizing the Android application market.

The multistate, bipartisan settlement is a rare victory for two sides of the political aisle that often cannot agree on much, Bonta emphasized at the conference, but they were all in fast agreement to fight for changes and restitution for the impacted consumers.

Google will pay $630 million to over 100 million Android consumers to compensate for the high prices they charged for digital transactions in Google Play Store. The minimum payouts will range from $2 or more to those who were harmed by Google’s anti-competitive market practices between August 2016 to September.

“They made it extremely difficult for consumers to have options, for consumers to have options that would reduce price and they essentially effectively maintained a monopoly,” Bonta said.

Google will also pay out $70 million to the states in penalties, costs and fees.

The lawsuit, State of Utah et al. v. Google LLC, alleged that Google signed anti-competitive contracts to prevent other app stores from being preloaded on Android devices, bought off key app developers who might have launched rival app stores to the Google Play store, and created technological barriers to deter consumers from directly downloading apps to their devices.

In addition to the payouts, the settlement requires Google to cease its anti-competitive operations and make changes in their market conduct for injunctive relief. The changes include giving developers the ability to allow users to make payments through in-app billing systems other than Play Billing for a minimum of five years; allow for the installation of third-party apps on Android phones from sources outside the Google Play Store for at least seven years; maintain Android system support for third-party app stores, including allowing automatic updates, for four years; and many more changes.

The settlement also stipulates that Google must provide compliance reports to an independent monitor who will verify that the company is not continuing its anti-competitive behavior for at least five years. Bonta is confident that Google will comply with all the changes specified in the settlement, and if they don’t, legal action will be taken.

Other state attorneys general shared their views on the big win against Google and its anti-competitive behavior.

Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum said in a statement that Google has to make right for the harm it cost their Android consumers.

“Every company is required to play by the rules, from the smallest of mom-and-pop shops to the biggest brands on the planet, and this settlement demonstrates that principle as clear as day,” Rosenblum said.

In a statement Tuesday morning, New York Attorney General Letitia James condemned the market abuse that Google established to raise prices and block app developers from fairly selling their products in the Play Store.

“No company, no matter how large or powerful, is allowed to corner a market and use its influence to overcharge consumers and smother competition,” James said.

But this is not the first time the Department of Justice (DOJ) has taken a stand against Big Tech.

In September, the state secured a $93 million settlement with Google for violating California’s consumer protection laws, where they misled users by collecting and using their location data for consumer profiling and advertising purposes without obtaining informed consent.

In October, a lawsuit was filed against Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, by over 30 states alleging that their apps are harming the mental health of children who are becoming addicted to their platforms.

“Today’s settlement, as well as our active lawsuits send a clear message to not just Google but to all corporations doing business in California: If you use your power to illegally bend the market at the expense of consumers, small business owners and the economy, we’ll hold you accountable. We’ll see you in court,” Bonta said.

The attorney general would not comment on whether they would go after Apple, which has been accused of trying to stifle competition in the app market, but he shared that the settlement with Google could serve as a model for “other app stores” including those headquartered in California, such as Apple.

Magaly Muñoz

A graduate of Sacramento State University, Magaly Muñoz’s journalism experience includes working for the State Hornet, the university’s student-run newspaper and conducting research and producing projects for “All Things Considered” at National Public Radio. She also was a community reporter for El Timpano, serving Latino and Mayan communities, and contributed to the Sacramento Observer, the area’s African American newspaper.

Muñoz is one of 40 early career journalists who are part of the California Local News Fellowship program, a state-funded initiative designed to strengthen local news reporting in California, with a focus on underserved communities.

The fellowship program places journalism fellows throughout the state in two-year, full-time reporting positions.

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Magaly Muñoz

A graduate of Sacramento State University, Magaly Muñoz’s journalism experience includes working for the State Hornet, the university’s student-run newspaper and conducting research and producing projects for “All Things Considered” at National Public Radio. She also was a community reporter for El Timpano, serving Latino and Mayan communities, and contributed to the Sacramento Observer, the area’s African American newspaper. Muñoz is one of 40 early career journalists who are part of the California Local News Fellowship program, a state-funded initiative designed to strengthen local news reporting in California, with a focus on underserved communities. The fellowship program places journalism fellows throughout the state in two-year, full-time reporting positions.

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Activism

Asm. Corey Jackson Proposes Safe Parking for Homeless College Students Sleeping in Cars

Assemblymember Corey Jackson (D-Moreno Valley), a member of the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC), is the author of AB 90, which would require community colleges and California State University campuses to create overnight parking programs where students can sleep safely in their vehicles. With one in four community college students in California experiencing homelessness in the past year, Jackson says the state must act urgently.

Published

4 hours ago

April 28, 2025

Oakland Post

Assemblymember Corey Jackson. File photo.

By Bo Tefu
California Black Media

As California’s housing crisis continues to impact students, new legislation, Assembly Bill (AB) 90, promises to allow college students without stable housing to sleep in their cars on campus, offering a stark but practical solution aimed at immediate relief.

“This just deals with the harsh realities that we find ourselves in,” he said at a recent hearing.

The bill passed its first committee vote and is gaining attention as housing affordability remains a top concern across the state. California rents are more than 30% above the national average, and long waitlists for student housing have left thousands in limbo. CSU reported more than 4,000 students on its housing waitlist last year.

Supporters stress that the bill is not a long-term solution, but a humane step toward helping students who have no other place to go. A successful pilot program at Long Beach City College has already shown that safe, supervised overnight parking can work, giving students access to restrooms, Wi-Fi, and a secure environment.

However, the CSU and community college systems oppose the bill, citing funding concerns. Critics also worry about safety and oversight. But Jackson and student advocates argue the crisis demands bold action.

“If we know students are already sleeping in their cars, why not help them do it safely?” said Ivan Hernandez, president of the Student Senate for California Community Colleges.

Oakland Post

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Activism

Faces Around the Bay: Author Karen Lewis Took the ‘Detour to Straight Street’

“My life has been a roller-coaster with an unlimited ride wristband! I was raised in Berkeley during the time of Ron Dellums, the Black Panthers, and People’s Park. I was a Hippie kid, my Auntie cut off all our hair so we could wear the natural styles like her and Angela Davis.

Published

8 hours ago

April 28, 2025

Oakland Post

Karen Lewis. Courtesy photo.

By Barbara Fluhrer

I met Karen Lewis on a park bench in Berkeley. She wrote her story on the spot.

I got married young, then ended up getting divorced, raising two boys into men. After my divorce, I had a stroke that left me blind and paralyzed. I was homeless, lost in a fog with blurred vision.

Jesus healed me! I now have two beautiful grandkids. At 61, this age and this stage, I am finally free indeed. Our Lord Jesus Christ saved my soul. I now know how to be still. I lay at his feet. I surrender and just rest. My life and every step on my path have already been ordered. So, I have learned in this life…it’s nice to be nice. No stressing, just blessings. Pray for the best and deal with the rest.

Nobody is perfect, so forgive quickly and love easily!”

Lewis’ book “Detour to Straight Street” is available on Amazon.

Oakland Post

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Activism

Barbara Lee Accepts Victory With “Responsibility, Humility and Love”

“I accept your choice with a deep sense of responsibility, humility, and love. Oakland is a deeply divided City,” Lee said in an April 19 statement. “I answered the call to run to unite our community, so that I can represent every voter, and we can all work together as One Oakland to solve our most pressing problems.”

Published

8 hours ago

April 28, 2025

Oakland Post

Barbara Lee. File photo.

By Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌,
California‌ ‌Black‌ ‌Media‌

As a candidate for mayor, former U.S. Representative Barbara Lee released a “10-point plan” last week to reassure residents that she will tackle Oakland’s most pressing challenges.

Now that she has edged out her competitors in the ranked-choice special election with 50% or more of the vote, the former Congresswoman, who represented parts of the Bay Area in the U.S. House of Representatives, can put her vision in motion as the city’s first Black woman mayor.

On Saturday evening, Taylor conceded to Lee. There are still about 300 Vote-by-Mail ballots left to be verified, according to county election officials. The ballots will be processed on April 21 and April 22.

“This morning, I called Congresswoman Barbara Lee to congratulate her on becoming the next Mayor of Oakland,” Taylor said in a statement.

“I pray that Mayor-Elect Lee fulfills her commitment to unify Oakland by authentically engaging the 47% of Oaklanders who voted for me and who want pragmatic, results-driven leadership.”

The influential Oakland Post endorsed Lee’s campaign, commending her leadership on the local, state, and federal levels.

Paul Cobb, The Post’s publisher, told California Black Media that Lee will bring back “respect and accountability” to the mayor’s office.

“She is going to be a collegial leader drawing on the advice of community nonprofit organizations and those who have experience in dealing with various issues,” Cobb said. “She’s going to try to do a consensus-building thing among those who know the present problems that face the city.”

Born in El Paso, Texas, Lee’s family moved to California while she was in high school. At 20 years old, Lee divorced her husband after the birth of her first child. After the split, Lee went through a tough period, becoming homeless and having to apply for public assistance to make ends meet.

But destitution did not deter the young woman.

Lee groomed herself to become an activist and advocate in Oakland and committed to standing up for the most vulnerable citizens in her community.

Lee traveled to Washington, D.C. to work for then U.S. Congressman Ron Dellums after receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree from Mills College in Oakland in 1973. Lee later won a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) fellowship to attend the School of Social Welfare, and she earned a Master of Social Work from the University of California-Berkeley in 1975.

Lee later served in the California State Assembly and State Senate before she was elected to Congress in 1998.

After serving in the U.S. Congress for more than 25 years, Lee ran unsuccessfully for California’s U.S. Senate in the 2024 primary election.

Lee joins current Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass and former San Francisco Mayor London Breed as Black women serving as chief executives of major cities in California over the last few years.