The showdown between Apple and Epic Games shows no signs of being over . Apple filed itscountersuittoday against the Fortnite Godhead , essay compensatory and punitory damages in addition to call for the court to hold Epic accountable for its contractual obligation with Apple .
“ Epic ’s actions have caused Apple to suffer reputational damage and loss of goodwill with consumer who swear on Apple to bid the apps they want to download , like Fortnite , with all of the safety , security department , and privacy protection that they require from Apple , ” Apple say in its filing . “ leave ungoverned , Epic ’s conduct threatens the very existence of the iOS ecosystem and its terrific value to consumer . ”
Apple claimed that Epic purposefully commit a “ Trojan horse ” to the App Store , hiding a line of products of computer code in a Fortnite hotfix that allowed the gaming company to “ bypass Apple ’s app revaluation process ” so it could trigger the option for user to pay Epic directly for V - Bucks , the game ’s currency . Epic has denied that it hid anything from Apple .
Photo: Josh Edelson/AFP (Getty Images)
Apple read this hotfix amounted to “ piddling more than thievery , ” take that Epic purposefully judge to find a way to “ enjoy all of the benefits of Apple ’s Io platform and related to service ” without paying Apple what it was contractually owed .
“ Apple truly enforce its rights under the contractual agreement and the road map by removing the non - compliant Fortnite app from the App Store , ” Apple said . “ In keeping with its self - serve narration , Epic endeavor to recast Apple ’s conduct as ‘ retaliation . ’ But the exercise of a contractual rightfulness in answer to an open and admitted breach is not ‘ revenge . ’ ”
orchard apple tree points to an electronic mail from Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney that was ship at 2 a.m. on Aug. 13 , in which Sweeney write , “ Epic will no longer adhere to Apple ’s payment processing confinement , ” and that the society would begin declare oneself a verbatim payment method acting on its Fortnite macOS and iOS apps .
allot to Apple , that move is proof Epic ’s lawsuit was an “ orchestrated legal and public relations scheme to avoid the commissions to which Apple is contractually gentle ” and that Epic has not contested that it breached its contract with Apple . The same 24-hour interval that Epic announced it carry out a direct payment option , Apple move out Fortnite from the App Store , therefore freeing Epic Games from those “ payment processing restrictions . ”
It does n’t seem like Epic in reality stole from Apple , given that the company pretty clearly planned for Apple to reply to its move by booting Fortnite from the App Store . I mean , Sweeney ’s email was efficaciously : “ Hey , just a heads up , that 30 % thing ? Yeah , we ’re not gon na pay that anymore . ” And the commercial Epic turn afterwards seems to reaffirm that the ship’s company knew precisely the half mask upshot its move would have — just as it designate .
Last workweek , Epic Games filed a preliminary injunctionwith the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California to put Fortnite back on the App Store while it continues its legal fight with Apple . The company alreadywon a irregular restraining orderagainst Apple , preventing the technical school giant from booting Epic ’s Unreal Engine gaming program from the App Store in summation to Fortnite . In an earlier hearing , Apple said it believed Epic would violate its Unreal Engine contract bridge and it was taking precautional measures to prevent that by bump off Unreal Engine . However , because Epic maintains separate contracts with Apple for both Fortnite and Unreal , and because Epic had not violated its Unreal declaration , the judge saw no reason to allow Apple to remove it — never listen the countless issue of game developer and filmmakers that swear on Unreal to make their production .
That was one of the major talk points in Epic ’s filing last workweek , because the circumstances of Unreal is still in query . The TRO that was partially grant in Epic ’s favor last month only maintains the status quo until after the preliminary listening . look on how that die , it ’s potential that Unreal Engine will connect Fortnite in App Store purgatory — which mean developers and filmmakers presently crop on games or movies might not have access to the tools they want to perform update on their products or possibly carry on their work .
Further down the road , this could mean those creators would have to flip-flop to a dissimilar engine , like Unity , or forgo creating for macOS and iOS all together . That would put games likeDodo Peak , which was created with Unreal and was one of the first game to set up on Apple Arcade , in jeopardy .
Epic Games has until Sept. 18 to respond to Apple ’s countersuit . The next hearing is scheduled for Sept. 28 .
AppleEpic GamesFortnite
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