The Epic Games vs. Apple saga doesn’t seem to be coming to a close any time soon.
Epic already plans to bring the Epic Games Store and Fortnite back to iOS later this year, but that will happen only in Europe. However, Epic Games is now arguing that Apple has failed to comply with a court order that requires it to open up its App Store to alternative payment methods.
As shared by Bloomberg, Apple said that it would allow all third-party apps in the U.S. to include an “outside link” to process payments. According to the report, Apple has allowed the change, but it is still asking developers to pay a commission of up to 27 percent for any purchases made through the external link.
Epic’s CEO Tim Sweeney criticized Apple’s move earlier this month, calling it a “bad-faith compliance” on X (Twitter).
A quick summary of glaring problems we've found so far:
1) Apple has introduced an anticompetitive new 27% tax on web purchases. Apple has never done this before, and it kills price competition. Developers can't offer digital items more cheaply on the web after paying a… pic.twitter.com/YkHuapG7xa
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) January 16, 2024
Sweeney also added that “Epic will contest Apple’s bad-faith compliance plan in District Court.”
The feud between the two companies started back in 2020 when Epic added a direct payment option in Fortnite, which would allow it to bypass Apple’s commission. Apple subsequently removed Fortnite from the App Store, triggering a lawsuit from Epic.
As a result of the multi-year lawsuit, both companies have spent a ton on legal fees, and Apple wants Epic to cover its $73.4 million USD (about $99.37 million CAD) bill. Read more about it below:
Source: Bloomberg
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