India, July 16 -- Android users in the United States are about to get a pretty big upgrade. Soon you will be able to install rival app stores straight from Google Play. This kicks off on July 22, 2026, after Google and Epic Games dropped their latest attempt to tweak a court order about how Android apps are distributed.

This move clears a major hurdle for alternative app stores. No more jumping through hoops or sideloading from random sites. That said, Google is still very much in the mix when it comes to how these stores get app listings, follow safety rules, and push out downloads.

This whole saga started when Epic tried to dodge Google Play's payment system by selling Fortnite currency directly to players. Google pulled Fortnite from...