Yahoo Finance US court forces Apple to partly reverse Epic Games ban - but Fortnite will stay off App Store
Apple has been forced to reverse part of the company’s ban on Fornite maker Epic Games by a US court.
District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, who is overseeing an explosive lawsuit involving the iPhone maker and the video game company, issued a temporary order forcing Apple to partially reinstate Epic’s developer account. However, the order does not extend to returning Fortnite to the the App Store after the popular game was removed for breaking Apple's rules.
Two weeks ago Apple removed Fortnite, one of the world’s most popular video games, when Epic broke App Store rules by letting users buy in-game items directly from Epic, instead of using Apple’s payment system.
Apple also revoked Epic’s developer licence, meaning it is no longer able to develop and update separate software called the Unreal Engine, which is used by hundreds of developers to build their own games. Epic, which is suing Apple for monopoly abuse, sought an emergency order to have the bans lifted.
On Monday, Judge Gonzalez Rogers partially granted Epic's request. She signed an order saying that Apple was "temporarily restrained from taking adverse action against Epic Games... from Apple’s developer programme, including as to Unreal Engine".
However, she said she would not overturn the ban on Fortnite and Epic's own games. "The court observes that Epic Games strategically chose to breach its agreements with Apple which changed the status quo. No equities have been identified suggesting that the Court should impose a new status quo in favor of Epic Games," the order said.
Monday’s hearing was the first in what is likely to be a drawn out court battle between Epic and Apple. Epic claims that Apple’s control of the App Store, which takes a 30pc cut of many purchases, and its refusal to allow rival iPhone app stores, constitutes monopoly abuse and is illegal. The company is seeking to force Apple to allow alternatives.
“This is not something that is a slam dunk for Apple or for Epic Games,” Judge Gonzalez Rogers said. “With respect… to the Unreal Engine, here it seems to me that Apple has overreached. It does look to me retaliatory.”
Katherine Forrest, Epic’s lawyer, said: “Epic is concerned the Unreal Engine will actually be destroyed, it will no longer be a usable engine. We are receiving information from developers saying they are fleeing the Unreal Engine now. It's happening now. It's not speculative.”
Richard Doren, representing Apple, said that Apple was “simply enforcing legitimate business provisions” by banning Epic’s developer licences. He added: “If what Epic Games has done in Fornite were to make it into the Unreal Engine and to make it out into the marketplace… it would spread like a virus.”
Any order would be a temporary measure, ahead of a decision on a longer-term injunction that would be in place for a trial. Epic’s legal team said the company could be ready for a trial in four to six months, while Apple said 10 months would be more likely.
Epic is separately suing Google over a similar issue related to its Google Play Store.
