Apple has a strict policy when it comes to working with app providers. When buying through the Apple Store, 30 percent of the proceeds go directly to the iPhone manufacturer. Epic Games wants to avoid this levy, Apple threatens to be excluded. The "Fortnite" developer is taking legal action against it.
The dispute between the "Fortnite" makers and Apple now goes far beyond the popular online game and could shift the balance in the game industry. The graphics technology of the developer company Epic Games, which is used by various other apps, has now also been drawn into the conflict. Epic filed for an injunction to prevent Apple from terminating the company's access to its developer program at the end of the month. This means that Epic will lose the ability to further adapt its Unreal Engine graphics technology for use on iPhones and iPads, argued the company.
If the dispute lasts longer, app developers could switch to competing products such as the graphics software from rival Unity instead of Unreal. The dispute originally flared up over the distribution of the income from in-app purchases on iPhones and iPads. Apple levies 30 percent on purchases made within apps on its iPhones and iPads. This has been true since the introduction of the App Store in 2008. With a few exceptions, content in apps must run through Apple's system.
Last week, Epic offered the opportunity to buy virtual articles in "Fornite" at a lower price from the game company itself – and the app was promptly banned from the platform by Apple. Epic immediately had a 60-page lawsuit ready. Apple announced on Monday that the company would make no exception for Epic. They would like to keep the company as a participant in the developer program. But: "The problem that Epic created for themselves can easily be resolved if you submit an update to your app that is back to the guidelines that you have agreed to and that apply to all developers."
Epic also placed the alternative purchase method in the Android app, then flew from Google's Play Store download platform and also sued the Internet group. However, apps can also be loaded from other sources on Android smartphones.
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