Fortnite is poised to make a triumphant return to the U.S. iOS App Store and iPhones next week, following a pivotal court ruling, according to Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney. On April 30, a U.S. Federal District Court in California ruled that Apple had willfully violated a court order in the Epic Games v. Apple case. This order mandated Apple to allow developers to offer alternative payment methods outside their apps.
In response, Sweeney took to Twitter to propose a "peace proposal" to Apple, with whom Epic has been embroiled in legal battles for years. "If Apple extends the court's friction-free, Apple-tax-free framework worldwide, we'll return Fortnite to the App Store worldwide and drop current and future litigation on the topic," Sweeney stated.
Sweeney's ongoing legal battle against Apple and Google over app store policies is well-documented. Epic's goal is to bypass the standard 30% store fees on mobile game revenue by operating through its own Epic Games Store. This dispute led to Fortnite's removal from iOS back in 2020. Now, nearly five years later, Fortnite is set to return to U.S. iPhones.
The court ruling also eliminated fees on web transactions, which Sweeney celebrated as the end of the "Apple Tax." He noted that Apple's 15-30% fees are now considered unlawful in the U.S., similar to their status in Europe under the Digital Markets Act.
As a result of the ruling, Apple and one of its executives, Alex Roman, have been referred to federal prosecutors for a criminal contempt investigation. U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers criticized Apple's attempts to interfere with competition and stated that the court's injunction must be respected. Apple responded by disagreeing with the decision but promised to comply while appealing the ruling.
Epic's legal victories have primarily been in Europe, where the Epic Games Store launched on iPhones and Android devices last August. However, getting Fortnite running on mobile devices has been challenging, with "scare screens" deterring up to 50% of potential users, according to Epic.
Despite the financial strain and significant layoffs, including 830 employees from Epic's North Carolina studio in September 2023, Sweeney remains optimistic. In October last year, he declared the company "financially sound," citing record-breaking success for both Fortnite and the Epic Games Store.
Epic's Tim Sweeney is determined to defeat Apple and Google, however long it takes. Photo by SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg.
Fortnite is finally set to return to iPhones in the U.S., nearly five years after the game was pulled. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images.
