Apple Says Epic Games ‘Wants Us to Be Android, But We Don’t Want to Be’

The highly-anticipated Epic Games vs. Apple trial began today in a federal court in Oakland, California, with legal representatives for both business providing opening remarks before District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers.
Legal Representatives for Epic Games tried to paint the App Store as anti-competitive and monopolistic, keeping in mind that designers are required to use Apples in-app purchase system, and thus pay Apple a 30% commission on sales. (The rate drops to 15% for memberships after the first year and for certifying developers who register for Apples new Small Business Program and make less than $1 million per fiscal year in net income.).
Impressive Games described the App Store as a “walled garden” and presented emails from present and former Apple executives like Steve Jobs, Phil Schiller, Craig Federighi, Eddy Cue, and Scott Forstall in an attempt to show this claim.
Epic Games desires Apple to be required to allow third-party app shops on iOS and to let designers use direct payment systems, but Apple argued that a single, highly-curated App Store is needed to secure the security, personal privacy, reliability, and quality that customers have actually come to anticipate from the business.
” Epic desires us to be Android, however we dont want to be,” said Apple legal representative Karen Dunn, describing the capability to sideload apps beyond the Google Play store on Android devices. “Our consumers do not desire that either,” she added.
Legendary Games is the developer of popular fight royale game Fortnite, which Apple removed from the App Store in August 2020, shortly after Epic Games slyly presented a direct payment alternative in the app, in defiance of the App Store rules. Impressive Games then filed a managed claim against Apple, accusing the company of anti-competitive habits.
At the time, Apple stated Epic Games “took the unfortunate action of violating the App Store standards that are used similarly to every designer and designed to keep the shop safe for our users,” including that it would “make every effort to deal with Epic to solve these offenses so they can return Fortnite to the App Store.” Impressive Games has actually refused to cooperate, however, and Fortnite remains not available on the App Store.
Impressive Games CEO Tim Sweeney testified at the trial today, saying that by introducing the direct payment option, he desired consumers to see that Apple works out “total control” over iOS and software available on the platform.
The trial is expected to continue for a total of three weeks, with Apples CEO Tim Cook and other executives expected to affirm.