Dec 12 (Reuters) - Telecom giant Telefonica 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.

The 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's Galaxy store.

It also marks the first time Epic's game store will be

pre-installed on Android devices.

Users will also be able to download third-party games in the

future, the companies said.

The partnership is also 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's Google and Samsung of stifling

app store competition.

Epic Games earlier had a face-off with Google and iPhone

maker Apple ( 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 European

Union 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.