That means Google may not have to open up its Play Store for years, if at all, while it appeals the verdict. In December, a jury unanimously decided that Google’s Android app store, the Play Store, had become an illegal monopoly, though Google is now appealing that jury verdict as well as the court’s order.

The now-delayed order would have forced Google to make sweeping changes to its Play Store for Android smartphones starting Nov. 1.

A US judge on Friday let Google put off opening Android-powered smartphones to rival app shops while the tech titan appeals an order to do just that.The ruling by federal Judge James Donato spares Google from having to meet a November 1 deadline to open its Android smartphone operating system to rival app stores.

A US judge let Google delay opening Android smartphones to rival app stores, suspending a November 1 deadline in an antitrust case by Fortnite-maker Epic Games

The latest development is part of an ongoing antitrust lawsuit filed by Epic Games, the developer of "Fortnite." Google had recently approached the California federal court, seeki

Judge James Donato, who had previously ruled that Googles Android app store constituted an illegal monopoly, agreed to push back the deadline for enforcing significant changes to its rules. This delay will give time for the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to review Googles request for a longer-term stay.