Telefonica Partners with Epic Games

(Reuters) – Telecom (BCBA:TECO2m) giant Telefonica (NYSE:TEF) is partnering with Epic Games to bring the "Fortnite" video game maker's marketplace app directly to millions of devices on the Spanish company's network, the companies said on Thursday.

The marketplace app, called "Epic Games Store," will be pre-installed on all new compatible Android devices operating on the Telefonica network across regions including Spain, UK, Germany, Mexico, and Spanish-speaking Latin America.

This move will allow players to more easily download game titles including "Fortnite," "Fall Guys," and "Rocket League Sideswipe" directly from Epic's store, rather than relying on conventional app marketplaces like Google's Play store or Samsung (KS:005930)'s Galaxy store.

It also marks the first time Epic's game store will be pre-installed on Android devices, with users also able to download third-party games in the future.

The partnership is a win for Epic, which has been attempting to expand the distribution of its video games beyond smartphone companies' official app stores and has accused Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL)'s Google and Samsung of stifling app store competition.

Epic Games previously faced off with Google and Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) over their rules of charging up to 30% commissions on app store payments. After getting banned for nearly four years, Fortnite returned to iPhones in the EU and worldwide on Google's Android devices in August.

Cary, North Carolina-based Epic and Telefonica said they would expand the partnership over the next year and "bring more benefits to mobile players across the Telefonica network," without elaborating further.