Apple achieves partial victory in Epic Games App Store case

U.S. technology corporation Apple achieved a partial victory at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which overturned parts of a court order requiring the company to change its App Store business model to increase competition.

However, the court upheld a broader injunction against Apple, Reuters reported, CE Report quotes BTA.

The decision is part of the ongoing legal dispute between Apple and video game maker Epic Games, which filed a lawsuit in 2020 seeking to limit Apple’s control over app distribution and payments within the iOS operating system.

The three-judge panel ruled that part of the earlier injunction was too broad and needed to be revised. At the same time, the court modified a key element of the prior ruling — Apple may now charge a “reasonable commission” on purchases made outside the App Store, instead of being completely barred from doing so.

However, the core injunction remains in place, requiring Apple to allow links in apps to external payment methods — a change originally ordered in 2021.

Epic Games CEO Timothy Dean Sweeney described the ruling as a victory for developers and consumers, saying it stops Apple’s “huge unnecessary fees.”

“After years of obstruction by Apple, we will finally see meaningful changes,” Sweeney said.

Apple declined to comment on the ruling to Reuters.

Epic Games filed the lawsuit in 2020, calling for reduced control by the tech company over in-app payments on iOS and over how apps are distributed to users.

Apple won most of the case, but in 2021 was ordered to allow developers to include links in apps directing users to alternative payment methods.

In response, Apple removed some restrictions but introduced new ones, including a 27 percent commission on purchases made outside the App Store within seven days after a user clicks a link, compared to a 30 percent commission inside the App Store.

Epic Games argued that the 27 percent fee violated the injunction and asked the court to find Apple in contempt, which the company denied.

In April, U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that Apple had ignored her 2021 decision and imposed a new ban on commissions related to external purchases, referring the matter to federal prosecutors for possible criminal charges.

The Appeals Court ruled, however, that while Apple must be allowed to charge a commission on external purchases, limits must still apply.

Apple argued in its appeal that the new order improperly expanded the original injunction, but the court rejected the claim that the ruling should apply only to Epic Games.