Epic Games says Apple’s App Store practices entail monopolistic conduct, a characterization the iPhone maker denies
By Sarah E. Needleman Close Sarah E. Needleman Sept. 28, 2020 5:30 am ET The ruling after a California federal court hearing Monday might serve as an early test of “Fortnite” maker Epic Games Inc.’s claims that Apple Inc.’s AAPL 3.75% App Store practices run afoul of antitrust law, legal analysts say.
Epic claims that Apple’s App Store commission is excessive, that Apple unfairly prohibits developers from processing customer transactions themselves and that the tech giant abuses its control of the marketplace to stifle competition. Epic’s lawsuit says the tech giant’s practices violate the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890, a law that bars monopolistic conduct.
Some legal observers say Epic might have difficulty prevailing, in part, because Epic and Apple don’t compete principally in the same markets. Epic could also struggle to prove it has suffered irreparable harm from “Fortnite” being taken out of the App Store because it knowingly broke Apple’s rules and could avoid that harm by complying pending trial.
U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers last month allowed Apple to keep “Fortnite” out of the App Store, for now, but blocked the company from pulling all of Epic’s developer credentials needed to distribute software on Apple devices. Judge Gonzalez Rogers wrote in her ruling that “serious questions do exist” regarding Epic’s claims, though she said the company hadn’t fully demonstrated that its arguments would be successful, especially in the antitrust context.
Developers have historically been reticent to publicly challenge app stores’ rules at the risk of losing access to users and drawing the ire of companies with abundant financial resources, such as Apple.
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