Microsoft says that the Xbox game store for Android is ready, but they can't launch it

We have been waiting for months for Xbox to launch a gaming app on Android, something that we all see as the logical step. With stores on PC and console, what is stopping Xbox from launching the same app on our phone? It seems that the answer has just been given by the company’s management.

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A few weeks ago, Sarah Bond, President of Xbox after the company’s merger with Activision / Blizzard, said that in November “players will be able to play and purchase Xbox games directly from the Xbox app on Android.” We are almost in December and the feature is still not available, but Bond says it is not Microsoft’s fault.

The problem, according to her, is that Microsoft will only be able to do so when a court order comes into effect that requires radical changes to Google’s Play Store on Android, such as opening it to competition and ending the requirement for apps to use Google Play Billing.

3/4: 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.

— BondSarahBond (@bondsarahbond.bsky.social) 27 de noviembre de 2024, 22:15

A real excuse or just buying time?

On October 18, Judge James Donato granted Google’s request to suspend the process while appeals its ruling that the Android app store is an illegal monopoly, which could leave things hanging by a thread for quite some time.

Sarah Bond has referred to it in a Bluesky thread today, writing: “Due to a recently granted temporary administrative suspension 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 the publication of this message, Google’s spokesperson, Dan Jackson, responded with the same statement that the company had issued several weeks ago. This is how Google defends itself against these Xbox statements:

“Microsoft has always been able to offer its Android users the ability to play and purchase Xbox games directly from its app, it has simply chosen not to do so. Microsoft, like Epic, is ignoring these very real security issues. We remain focused on supporting an ecosystem that works for everyone, not just for two of the largest gaming companies,” explains the spokesperson.

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Microsoft has been planning its mobile app store strategy for years. However, frustrating as it may be for players, the company has yet to explicitly state which aspects of the situation prevent it from offering Xbox game purchases as Steam and PlayStation already do. It’s as if they don’t want to pay Google’s commission on Android, but don’t mind doing so on Steam, Xbox, or Nintendo platforms.