Apple bans Epic Games account and Fortnite stays off iPhone

Epic Games announced this Wednesday (6): Is developer account banned? iOS. This measure means a step back from Apple, which approved the profile a few days ago.

With the action, its subsidiary Epic Games Sweden AB Launching games on devices such as iPhone and iPad is now prohibited. In February, it was even confirmed that Fortnite had been relaunched on iOS after more than three years of ban, when the account was approved following complaints from the developer.

For now, Apple has not made an official comment on the issue. Epic Games expressed regret for the situation in a post on the company’s official website. blames apple Violating the policies of the Digital Markets Act or DMAEuropean Union law that allows the launch of alternative app stores on an operating system.

Fortnite continues beyond iOS

According to Epic Games CEO and founder Tim Sweeney, the action was a “retaliation” by Maça following lawsuits filed by the developer against the giant. In the lawsuits, the studio accuses Apple of attempting a monopoly, among other anti-competitive market actions.

Also Sweeney Criticized Apple’s social media strategies Trying to reduce DMA’s duties. At least regionally, laws limit the power of the App Store as the sole platform on devices.

“Apple is eliminating one of the App Store’s biggest potential competitors. This hurts our ability to be a viable competitor and shows other developers what can happen when trying to compete with Apple. or criticizes unfair practices.”

The studio also warns that if it continues to remove apps from the platform, “no reasonable developer is willing to use third party app store”because this will hurt these developers in the long run.

Remember the fight between Apple and Epic Games

The dispute between Epic Games and Apple started in 2020. During this period, the developer was banned from the App Store after trying to circumvent the mandatory 30% fee for microtransactions in the digital store. As a result, Fortnite was removed from the company’s devices.

In response, Epic Games sued Apple and even released a parody video of the classic commercial for the first Macintosh. It references George Orwell’s book 1984 and portrays Apple as the dictator in question.

The first decision of the trial came in 2021 and was in favor of Apple. The two parties appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, ultimately obtaining no change. In a similar ongoing dispute against Google, Epic Games won a partial victory in court.