In a recent move, the business requested that a judge reject Epic’s claim that Apple had violated a 2021 injunction.
In a request that was submitted to a judge in California this month, Epic Games asked the judge to punish Apple in contempt for what it alleges are violations of an injunction that was issued in 2021 over the company’s actions regarding the App Store policies. The petition is an attempt to “micromanage Apple’s business operations in a way that would increase Epic’s profitability,” according to a recent document that was discovered by Reuters. Apple is now requesting that the judge reject Epic’s request. The motion is an attempt to “micromanage Apple’s business operations.”
In the initial injunction, which was issued by United States District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, Apple was ordered to allow developers to include an option for external payment methods. This would enable developers to avoid costs of up to thirty percent on any transactions made through the App Store or within the app itself. In January, Apple issued new criteria for developers to follow while using the App Store. These guidelines do let developers to link to external websites in order to locate alternate purchase options; however, the new rules also require developers to obtain Apple’s approval before doing so and levy a commission of 12–27 percent on these transactions. The argument that Epic made was that this renders alternate payment alternatives “commercially unusable.” Reuters reported this.
Epic also stated at the time that Apple’s “so-called compliance is a sham,” and she accused the firm of violating the injunction with its recent actions. Epic’s statement was made at the time. Apple maintains that it has acted in accordance with the injunction, stating in the new filing that “the purpose of the Injunction is to make information regarding alternative purchase options more readily available.” This statement refers to the fact that the injunction is not intended to dictate the commercial terms on which Apple provides access to its platform, tools and technologies, and userbase.