Microsoft can’t launch the Xbox Store on Android due to a court order

Microsoft has long been working on a mobile Xbox storefront for Android and iOS platforms. The Xbox Store app would allow users to bypass Google’s Play Store and Apple’s App Store and purchase and launch games directly through Microsoft’s own application. Despite the company’s plans to launch an Xbox app on Android in November, the Xbox parent has been unable to do so due to a delay in the October court order ordering Google to open up its Play Store and allow competition to stand.

Xbox Storefront on Android postponed

In a thread on the Play Store.

“At Xbox, we want to give players more choice about how and where they play, including the ability to play and purchase games directly from the Xbox app,” Bond said in her post on the platform.

“I recently shared our ambition to unlock these features first with the Google Play Store on Android devices in the US, as other app stores adapt to meet consumer demand.

“Due to a temporary administrative stay recently granted by the court, we are currently unable to launch these features as planned. Our team has built the functionality and is ready to go live as soon as the court makes a final decision.”

Bond said Microsoft was keen to launch the Xbox app and “provide more choice and flexibility to players”. The Xbox president had already said this in October when a US court ordered Google to revise its Play Store policy, which allowed Android users to purchase and download apps from other marketplaces. Bond had said at the time that Android users would be able to buy and play games from the Xbox app on the platform from November.

“The court’s ruling to open Google’s mobile store in the US will allow more choice and flexibility. Our mission is to get more players playing on more devices, so we’re excited to share that starting in November, players will be able to play and purchase Xbox games directly from the Xbox app on Android,” Bond said in a message on X.

In one statement However, a Google spokesperson told The Verge that Microsoft could offer Android users the ability to buy and play games through the Xbox app, but the company had chosen not to do so. “The court’s order and the rush to enforce its implementation threaten Google Play’s ability to provide a secure experience. Microsoft, like Epic, is ignoring these very real security concerns. We remain focused on supporting an ecosystem that works for everyone, not just two of the biggest gaming companies,” the spokesperson said.

Court ruling in Google’s Play Store

The Xbox mobile marketplace is the latest flashpoint in the contentious antitrust minefield: Apple and Google’s strict policies on mobile app storefronts, which would stifle competition on their respective platforms. Fortnite maker Epic Games had filed antitrust lawsuits against both companies over Play Store and App Store rules that enforce a commission on every purchase and ban alternative storefronts.

In October, a US court ordered Google to overhaul the Play Store to provide Android users with alternative stores to download apps. Users would be able to pay for their transactions at competing stores. Following the order, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney had said that the Epic Games Store and other app stores would come to Google Play in 2025.

However, weeks later, Google was granted a temporary reprieve by court order after the tech giant argued that doing so would harm the company and “introduce serious safety, security and privacy risks into the Android ecosystem.”

In March 2023, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer had said that the company would launch its own app store for Xbox games and third-party content on iOS and Android. The store was initially expected to go live in March 2024.

Later that year in December, Spencer said that Microsoft was in talks with external partners and claimed that the Xbox mobile store could launch sooner rather than later. “It’s a key part of our strategy and something we’re actively working on today, not just on our own, but also in discussions with other partners who would also like to see more choice in how they can monetize over the phone,” he said. Spencer reportedly said in an interview at the time.