The European Union's digital enforcer celebrated on Friday the "change" underway in the tech world after Apple yielded to a new EU law by announcing it would allow alternative app stores on the iPhone for the first time.
17.01.2024 - 11:49 / gadgets.ndtv.com / Tim Sweeney / App Store
The US Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to hear a challenge by Apple to a lower court's decision requiring changes to certain rules in its lucrative App Store, as the justices shunned the lengthy legal battle between the iPhone maker and Epic Games, maker of the popular video game Fortnite.
The justices also turned away Epic's appeal of the lower court's ruling that Apple's App Store policies limiting how software is distributed and paid for do not violate federal antitrust laws. The justices gave no reasons for their decision to deny the appeals.
Apple's stock fell more than 2 percent in early trading on Tuesday.
In a social media post, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney said, "The court battle to open iOS (Apple's mobile operating system) to competing stores and payments is lost in the United States. A sad outcome for all developers."
The Supreme Court denied both sides' appeals of the Epic v. Apple antitrust case. The court battle to open iOS to competing stores and payments is lost in the United States. A sad outcome for all developers.
Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Epic filed an antitrust lawsuit in 2020, accusing Apple of acting as an illegal monopolist by requiring consumers to get apps through its App Store and buy digital content inside an app using its own system. Apple charges up to a 30 percent commission for in-app purchases.
US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in 2021 rejected Epic's antitrust claims against Apple. But the judge found that Apple violated California's unfair competition law by barring developers from "steering" users to make digital purchases that bypass Apple's in-app system, which Epic contends could save them money with lower commissions.
The San Francisco-based 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals upheld much of Rogers' decision in 2023, finding that Epic had "failed to prove the existence of substantially less restrictive alternatives" to Apple's system.
The judge's injunction requires Apple to let app developers provide links and buttons that direct consumers to other ways to pay for digital content that they use in their apps.
Sweeney wrote on his social media post: "As of today, developers can begin exercising their court-established right to tell US customers about better prices on the web."
In its appeal to the Supreme Court, Epic had said that the 9th Circuit's decision "guarantees severe anticompetitive harm and effectively insulates the most monopolistic tech-platform practices from antitrust scrutiny."
Apple had noted in its appeal that Epic did not file a class-action lawsuit and said the broad injunction imposed by Rogers exceeds the constitutional authority of federal courts, which typically should be limited to providing relief to the
The European Union's digital enforcer celebrated on Friday the "change" underway in the tech world after Apple yielded to a new EU law by announcing it would allow alternative app stores on the iPhone for the first time.
The Epic Games Store’s next free title has been announced.
Apple has announced that iOS and iPadOS 17.4 will introduce support for developer app sideloading and third party app stores in the EU, complying with the incoming Digital Markets Act (DMA). But there’s an awful lot of caveats to this, with the iPhone maker determined to keep as much control and make this as awkward, fussy, and costly as possible.
Following Apple's announcement of enabling third-party app stores for iOS users in the European Union, Epic Games confirms that it'll be bringing Fortnite back to the iPhone and iPad in Europe later this year — by way of a new Epic mobile games store. This will mark the title's official return to Apple's platform since it was yanked back in August 2020, after Epic offered discounts to payments made directly to its own store, instead of Apple's App Store and Google Play which would take a 30-percent cut. iOS users have had to rely on Xbox Cloud Gaming or GeForce Now to play Fortnite, but this will soon be a thing of the past for those based in Europe.
Beyond its new policy allowing game streaming apps worldwide, Apple today announced new changes it is making to comply with the European Union's Digital Markets Act, most notably that it will allow alternative app payments and app stores.
Apple has announced that iOS and iPadOS 17.4 will introduce support for developer app sideloading and third party app stores in the EU, complying with the incoming Digital Markets Act (DMA). But there’s an awful lot of caveats to this, with the iPhone maker determined to keep as much control and make this as awkward, fussy, and costly as possible.
Fortnite is coming back to iOS this year, at least in Europe, Epic Games announced today. It will do so by taking advantage of the Digital Markets Act law passed by the European Union, which will let the Epic Games Store on iOS.
As part of major changes to Apple’s App Store policies to comply with EU regulations, the company has also announced that game streaming apps are now to be accepted on the App Store for the first time. This opens the door for Xbox Game Pass, GeForce Now, PlayStation Plus, Amazon Luna and other game streaming subscriptions to have dedicated apps on iPhone and iPad – they were previously only accessible via built-in web browsers.
Fortnite maker Epic Games says it'll be launching a native iOS version of the Epic Games Store — and bringing Fortnite back to iOS devices — following today's announcement that Apple will soon allow sideloading and alternate marketplaces on its devices to comply with new EU rules. That's as Epic boss Tim Sweeney calls Apple's revised guidelines «hot garbage».
Epic Games has announced that it will be bringing Fortnite back to iOS devices later this year thanks in part to a change in EU law.
Apple has changed its stance on game streaming apps, potentially opening the door for an Xbox Game Pass app on the iOS App Store.
Alongside the numerous changes Apple is making to its platforms to comply with the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), the company is also updating its rules around streaming game services and other apps that provide access to mini-apps or games. The changes could impact companies like Netflix, which has expanded into mobile and cloud gaming in recent months, as well as efforts from other tech giants like OpenAI, which offers a GPT store, and Meta, which in 2022 had shut down its attempt at running a standalone Facebook Gaming app after failing to gain traction.