Apple has terminated Epic Games’ developer account, blocking any chances of the return of Fortnite or any other games by the company on iOS in the future. Epic Games was planning to develop a games store for iOS after Apple was forced to make changes in App Store policy in the European Union in order to comply with the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
Epic Games said in a blog post on March 6 that it's being punished for speaking out against Apple’s unfair and illegal practices.
The gaming firm said Apple sent a letter informing them that their developer program membership was terminated due to public criticism of Apple's DMA compliance plan. Apple also stated that it considers Epic Games a “threat” to its ecosystem.
“This is a serious violation of the EU’s Digital Markets Act. We will continue to fight to get back on iOS,” Epic Games said in a post on X on March 6.
Despite lashing out at Apple’s DMA compliance plan, Epic Games had assured the big tech firm in its email interactions that it plans to comply with all the terms of its developer agreements.
Apple announced on January 25 that it would provide options for app distribution and payment processing to developers in accordance with the DMA, but also introduced a 3% additional fee for using App Store payment processing. Apple also announced a new core technology fee of €0.50 per year for each first annual install on apps with over 1 million annual installs in the EU, even if they are installed from a third-party app marketplace.
Back in January, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney called Apple’s manner of compliance with the DMA as “malicious” and filled with junk fees that will continue to hurt developers.
DMA aims to restrict gatekeeper companies such as Apple, Amazon and Google from using their dominant position in different online markets to thwart competition. It also aims to enhance user choices by allowing interoperability between social media and alternative services such as alternate payment processing and third party app stores.
In 2020, Apple blocked Fortnite from the App Store after Epic Games violated its rules and offered links for third party payments in the game. Epic Games challenged Apple with a lawsuit in a US court.
In April 2023, a US appeals court ruled against Apple and called Apple’s practice “anticompetitive” and “harmful” to consumers. However, the court rejected nine other antitrust allegations including the one related to 30% commission on in-app purchases and subscriptions. The court also dismissed the argument that blocking third-party app marketplaces on iOS was a violation of antitrust laws.
The tussle between developers and app marketplace owners in India also reached a new flashpoint early this week after Google suspended several Indian apps including Shaadi.com, Bharat Matrimony, Kuku FM, and 99Acres for non-compliance with the Play Store rules on commission it charges developers for using Google’s Play Store and its billing service.
In October 2022, India’s anti-competition watchdog Competition Commission of India (CCI) slapped a fine of Rs 936 crore on Google for abusing its position as a gatekeeper and ordered it to allow the use of third-party billing.
Google allowed third party billing in India from April 26 but continues to charge a commission that is only 4% lower than Google’s billing system. This has irked many developers who feel that Google’s commission from third party billing should be much lower.