In the Epic Games vs. Apple case, a judge ruled in Epic Games’ favor, limiting Apple’s ability to prohibit applications from using direct payment methods.
According to Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney, Apple has turned down their request to remove Epic’s developer account from the Apple Play Store. Fortnite, one of the most popular battle royale multiplayer games in the world, will no longer be available for download.
In a tweet, Tim Sweeney said that Apple lied to them , Apple spent a year telling the world, the court, and the press that Epic’s return to the App Store would be welcomed if the said company agreed to follow the same rules as everyone else. Epic agreed, but Apple has now reneged, abusing its dominant power over a billion people.
Case of Apple vs. Epic
Fortnite has a huge following on content streaming sites like YouTube and Twitch, with millions of players logging in every day. However, Epic Games, the creator of Fortnite, recently filed an antitrust lawsuit against Apple, a California-based tech giant.
In the Epic Games vs. Apple case, a judge ruled in Epic Games’ favor, limiting Apple’s ability to prohibit applications from including direct payment methods, contacts, or external links. Except for this one, Apple has won all of the rulings. The case involving the Apple App Store discusses the company’s monopoly on payment methods and high commission rates on in-app purchases.
Epic is no longer allowed to publish apps on Apple’s App Store.
Epic received an email from Apple last night, according to Tim Sweeney. According to the email, Epic Games will be unable to access their developers account for the purpose of publishing iOS apps until the legal proceedings are completed, which could take up to five years, as stated by Epic CEO on Twitter. Take a look at the tweet below, which also includes a document.
Fortnite was available on the Apple App Store, Android App Store, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC, and Nintendo Switch, among other platforms. However, Google and Apple both removed Fortnite from their digital app stores after Epic added external payment portals to the game for both Android and Apple Play Store. Epic responded by filing a lawsuit against both companies, but it has yet to reclaim its position in the Apple and Google digital stores.