Microsoft says it’s built an Xbox game store on Android but can’t launch it

By Richard Lawler , a senior editor following news across tech, culture, policy, and entertainment. He joined The Verge in 2021 after several years covering news at Engadget.

A few weeks ago, Microsoft exec Sarah Bond said that in November, “players will be able to play and purchase Xbox games directly from the Xbox App on Android.” It’s almost December and the feature still isn’t live, but Bond says it’s not Microsoft’s fault.

The problem, as she puts it, is that Microsoft would only be able to do it once a court order takes effect that forces sweeping changes for Google’s Play Store on Android, like opening it up to competition and ending the requirement for apps to use Google Play Billing.

On October 18th, Judge James Donato granted Google’s request for a stay while it appeals his ruling that the Android app store is an illegal monopoly, which could leave things hanging in the balance for quite a while. Bond referenced that in a thread on Bluesky today, writing, “Due to a temporary administrative stay recently granted by the courts, we are currently unable to launch these features as planned. Our team has the functionality built and ready to go live as soon as the court makes a final decision.”

After this article was published, Google spokesperson Dan Jackson responded with the same statement the company had issued several weeks ago:

Leave a Comment