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Court's Decision In Epic/Apple Battle Explained

By Alaina Lancaster
October 01, 2021

The federal judge who presided over the antitrust showdown between Fortnite developer Epic Games Inc. and Apple Inc. found that Epic failed to prove the tech giant is a monopolist, but ordered Apple to allow certain in-app purchasing communications. Epic Games Inc. v. Apple Inc., 4:20-cv-05640.

Apple said it sees the judge's decision as a huge win, but the introduction of more accessible external payment options could mean Apple loses out on a portion of the 30% commission it earns from payments made to developers on the App Store.

Federal District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers of the Northern District of California issued a permanent injunction restraining Apple from "prohibiting developers from (i) including in their apps and their metadata buttons, external links, or other calls to action that direct customers to purchasing mechanisms, in addition to in-app purchasing and (ii) communicating with customers through points of contact obtained voluntarily from customers through account registration within the app."

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