Shares of Match Group Inc. surged 5.2% in premarket trading Friday, after the data apps company after Alphabet Inc.’s Google made “various concessions” regarding Match’s complaints. As a result, Match said it has withdrawn its request for a temporary restraining order, which it said last week that it would ask a federal judge to issue to prevent the search engine from throwing Match off its Google Play app store. Alphabet’s stock rose 1.0% ahead of the open. Match, which dating apps include Tinder, Match and OkCupid, said the concessions include a guarantee that Match apps will be allowed to offer users choice in payment systems. In addition, Google will approve Match app updates that offer alternatives to Google Play Billing. As part of the agreement between the companies, Match will put $40 million into an escrow account, instead of paying Google directly for billing transactions that occur outside of Google Play Billing, until the federal courts hears and adjudicates antitrust claims filed against Google on May 9. Match said it still believes the fees Google charges for payments outside of Google Play Billing are illegal. Match’s stock has plunged 43.3% year to date through Thursday, while Alphabet shares have shed 23.8% and the S&P 500 has dropped 18.2%.
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