Dispute over App Store: Serious defeat for Apple


Status: 10.09.2021 8:20 p.m.

In the past few months, Apple and the “Fortnite” game developer Epic have argued violently about the general conditions of the app store. Now Apple suffered a bitter defeat in court.

In the dispute over the rules of the game at Apple, the tech group suffered a heavy defeat. According to a ruling by a federal court in Oakland, California, Apple must comply with the developers in terms of paying for the apps and services.

In the Apple case against the game developer Epic, judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that Apple could not forbid developers to include buttons or links in their apps that refer customers to other payment options outside of Apple’s own in-app purchase system. The ruling also states that Apple cannot prohibit developers from communicating with customers using contact information that the developers received when they signed up within the app.

Rogers granted an injunction requested by Epic. On one point, however, the judge confirmed a position taken by Apple: that the company does not have a monopoly on the market for online gaming transactions.

The heart of the dispute: commissions

The core of the dispute between developers like Epic and Apple are the commissions that Apple charges in its app store, namely 15 and 30 percent of sales. The dispute with Epic Games escalated a year ago when the game maker tried to bypass the payment system. Apple then banned “Fortnite” – Epic’s most popular game – from its app store. “Fortnite” is played by around 400 million people worldwide. Epic Games had sued for it.

Because of the violation of Apple’s terms and conditions, the court also sentenced Epic to pay Apple damages amounting to almost four million dollars.

Heavy financial blow for Apple

Overall, however, the decision is a bitter defeat for Apple, the most valuable company in the world: According to analysts, the company has an annual revenue of more than $ 20 billion with its app store. The profit margin should be over 75 percent here.

Apple interpreted the judgment as a success despite the injunction. “Today the court confirmed what we always knew: the App Store does not violate antitrust law.” The court also found that “success is not illegal”.

According to the judgment, the share gives way

After the verdict, Apple shares fell by around 2.5 percent. Investors were apparently unsure of the effects that the ruling, which has not yet become final, will have on Apple’s future balance sheets.

Epic, which last year raised more than five billion dollars with “Fortnite”, is also taking legal action against Apple in the EU, Great Britain and Australia. In addition, the game manufacturer sued the Internet company Google for similar business models in the Google Play Store.

Apple suffered severe defeat in court

Marcus Schuler, ARD Los Angeles, 9/10/2021 8:48 p.m.

With information from Marcus Schuler, ARD Studio Los Angeles



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