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Apple has filed a counterclaim against Fortnite maker Epic Games in the duo’s current legal drama.
In a filing with the United States District Court for the Oakland Division of the Northern District of California, the App Store giant dismissed Epic’s case as “nothing more than a basic disagreement over money.”
Apple went on to say that the creator of Fortnite and Unreal Engine does not want to “pay anything for the tremendous value” he has received for being on the App Store.
The iPhone maker also alleges that Epic boss Tim Sweeney wrote to Apple executives on June 30, 2020, asking that his company be exempted from its existing contractual obligations for the App Store. This included the 30% platform fee that developers pay on Apple’s platform, of which Sweeney has long been a vocal opponent. Sweeney also apparently asked that his company be allowed to distribute its own competing Epic Games Store app on the App Store.
Apple refused, but claimed that Epic initiated a “sneaky assault” on the App Store with a review that allowed it to bypass the platform’s review process. This is what third-party Direct Payments implemented in Fortnite, something Apple describes as “theft, period.” Naturally, this constituted a breach of contract.
“Epic fired the first shot in this dispute, and their willful, blatant and illegal conduct cannot be left unchecked,” Apple said in its filing.
“Neither the self-righteous (and selfish) lawsuits of Mr. Sweeney nor the scale of Epic’s business can justify Epic’s deliberate breaches of contract, wrongful conduct, or unfair business practices. This Court must make Epic honor its contractual promises, grant punitive damages and compensation to Apple, and prohibits Epic from engaging in further unfair business practices. “
This follows Epic Games filing a legal complaint against Apple in August of this year after Fortnite was removed from the App Store. The highly successful Battle Royale title was ripped off Google Play as well, with Epic also taking Google to court for its allegedly anti-competitive practices.
At one point, Apple was planning to cancel Epic’s developer accounts and access to tools, something that could harm Unreal Engine developers, but was prevented from doing so in late August.
Epic games, like Fortnite and Infinity Blade, can no longer be downloaded from the App Store, even if consumers have already purchased them. The firm has requested a court order to reset Fortnite on iOS.
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