Epic Games suffers a crushing defeat in its Supreme Court case against Apple
The US Supreme Court has ruled in Apple's favor, preventing Epic Games from implementing its payment processor in Fortnite.
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The Epic Games v. Apple lawsuit reached the US Supreme Court a few weeks ago. The lawsuit between two tech giants concluded in September 2021, and Epic lost it. However, Apple was ordered to allow developers to implement other payment options, which is why the case was taken to the Supreme Court.
Unfortunately for the Fortnite creator, the court ruled in Apple’s favor. Due to this, the Cupertino-based company will keep charging a 30% fee for all transactions made within iOS applications. This doesn’t only affect Epic Games, but millions of other app developers as well.
Here’s everything you need to know about the latest development.
Fortnite will not return to Apple’s App Store anytime soon
Nearly two years ago, Epic Games lost the lawsuit and was ordered to pay Apple $3.6 million. In addition to this, Fortnite was removed from the App Store, which was a big hit for the video game developer. Unfortunately, the popular game won’t return to Apple’s digital storefront anytime soon.
Despite losing the lawsuit, Epic had a small, almost pyrrhic victory. At the conclusion of the lawsuit, Apple was found to have violated the California Unfair Competition Law. Due to this, the company needed to allow developers alternate payment options.
Naturally, the tech giant didn’t like this and appealed the decision with the US Supreme Court. The court ended up ruling in Apple’s favor, allowing the company to keep charging a 30% tax for all transactions. However, there is a glimmer of hope that things could improve in the future.
The ruling by the Supreme Court is temporary, meaning that the situation could change in the future. Epic Games could file an appeal with the court and continue the battle against Apple.
While this doesn’t mean much for Fortnite, this court case affects numerous app developers from all around the world, from small-time indie developers to giant corporations like Epic Games.
