After the “Fortnite” developer escalated its fight with Apple, and accused it of delaying its efforts to set up a games store on iPhones and iPads in Europe, Apple authorized Epic Games’ games marketplace app on Friday
Apple stated that the most recent dispute pertains to the Epic Sweden AB Marketplace and is unrelated to the Fortnite app, which the video game developer has already approved.
Apple’s restrictive oversight of the iOS app ecosystem has been criticized by antitrust regulators and app developers.
Before Apple’s announcement, Epic stated that the iPhone manufacturer had denied the documents the video game publisher submitted to launch the Epic Games Store on two separate occasions due to the similarity in the design of specific buttons and labels to those used by its App Store.
Epic stated in a succession of posts on X that they adhere to the standard conventions for buttons in iOS apps and employ the same “Install” and “In-app purchases” naming conventions used across popular app stores on multiple platforms.
“Apple’s rejection is arbitrary, obstructive, and in violation of the DMA (Digital Markets Act), and we’ve shared our concerns with the European Commission,” according to the statement.
The European Commission, which initiated an inquiry into the checks and evaluations implemented by Apple to verify the legitimacy of apps and alternative app stores for sideloading last month, declined to respond.
Epic and Apple have been embroiled in a legal dispute since 2020 when the gaming company claimed that Apple’s practice of charging up to 30% commissions on in-app payments on its iPhone Operating System (iOS) devices violated U.S. antitrust laws.
Apple proposed modifications to its App Store policies to adhere to specific directives of the DMA that were implemented in March of this year.
It permitted the use of alternative app stores on iPhones and opt-out from the in-app payments system. Still, it imposed a “core technology fee” deemed exploitative by numerous developers.