Explained: The story behind the Apple versus Fortnite App Store battle
Perhaps it’s a sign of our times that a potentially landmark
battle with antitrust implications is shaping up over digital pickaxes. The
court case involving Apple and
Epic Games, the maker of the video game Fortnite, is the result of the
gamemaker’s rebellion against rules and fees set by Apple in
its role of gatekeeper for apps on
its iPhones and iPads.
What’s the case about?
In
August, Epic’s billionaire founder, Tim Sweeney, announced that he would no
longer abide by Apple’s rule that all purchases of apps and
items within apps designed for its iOS-based devices
go through Apple’s payment system. After he activated Epic’s own payment
system, Apple kicked Fortnite out of its app
store. It also threatened to make it hard for developers using Epic’s tools to
build games. In response, Epic sued in federal court; it also sued Google over
the same issue Apple soon counter-sued.
What was Epic unhappy about?
That
Apple and Google charge fees of up to 30 per cent
to developers using their app stores. Consumers spent $50 billion worldwide on
the App Store and Google Play
in the first half of 2020, according to Sensor Tower estimates. That generated
billions of dollars in highly profitable revenue for the companies. Some
developers have derided this as an unfair and unwarranted tax, especially since
it applies not just to the purchase of an app, but to anything bought within
one.
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