The Epic v. Apple lawsuit alleging monopolistic practices by the latter will begin next month, and today the main arguments of each company were published, having been trimmed down somewhat at the court’s discretion. With the basic facts agreed upon, the two companies will go to battle over what they mean, and
their CEOs will likely take the (virtual) stand to do so.
As we’ve covered in previous months, the
thrust of Epic’s argument is that Apple’s hold over the app market and 30 percent standard fee amount to anti-competitive behavior that must be regulated by antitrust law. It rebelled against what it describes as an unlawful practice by slipping its own in-game currency store into the popular game Fortnite, circumventing Apple payment methods. (CEO Tim Sweeney would later, and unadvisedly, compare this to
resisting unjust laws in the civil rights movement.)
Apple denies the charge of monopoly, pointing out it faces enormous competition all over the market, just not within its own App Store. And as for the size of the fees — well, perhaps it’s a matter that could stand some adjustment (the company
dropped its take to 15% for any developer’s first million following criticism throughout 2020), but it hardly amounts to unlawfulness.
Judge denies Epic’s request to force Apple to bring Fortnite back to App Store
