Apple Inc. and Epic Games have been in a serious court battle since, almost, two years and at the end of the tunnel, there was definitely light. Yes, Epic Games V/s Apple comes to an end, at least it looks like it, and the California Judge has passed a permanent injunction against Apple’s App Store model, however, ruling that the iPhone maker does not hold an App Store monopoly.
Judge Gonzales Rogers issued a permanent injunction against Apple App Store which would allow developers to bypass the company’s 30 percent commission charged on in-app payments. This very issue was the backbone of the whole case and it has ended in Apple’s defeat.
As mentioned in a report by Engadget, the judge involved in the case announced a ruling that Apple violated California’s Unfair Competition Law leading to a permanent injunction. The report further confirms that the ruling is said to take effect in the next 90 days. So, this is definitely a big win for Epic Games that gave Apple an open challenge to win this battle.
However, the win will not seem like a win when you hear about Epic Games’ obligations that the judge has ruled during the hearing. Judge Gonzales Rogers played it smart with this case, making it a win-win situation for both technology giants. Apple cannot charge 30 percent commission from developers opting to add their own in-app payment method instead of using Apple’s. On the other hand, Epic Games is obligated to pay Apple an amount of USD 3.65 million which is 30 percent of the company’s earnings from Fortnite’s iOS players between the month of August and October 2020 through Epic’s in-app payment method that it bypassed from Apple’s system. For your information, the amount is near about USD 12, 167,719 out of which Epic is said to pay 30 percent i.e., USD 3.65 million.
Not just this, Engadget notes that Fortnite owner also has to pay 30 percent of the revenue it received through that system between the month of November 1st to date. In totality, this is going to be a pretty hefty amount that Epic Games is obligated to pay to the iPhone maker.
So, what does it look like, who won? Is Epic Games the winner of this court battle for getting what it wanted for the market, in order to end Apple’s alleged App Store monopoly or Apple won for extracting a ton of money from Epic Games.
Do let us know what you think because your opinions are the voice of TechStory.
