San Francisco, Calif. — A federal court has held Apple accountable for violating an injunction aimed at curbing what has been labeled as anticompetitive behavior. The ruling, delivered by U.S. District Court Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, requires Apple to stop charging commissions on transactions conducted through iPhone applications and mandates the company to cover Epic Games’ legal fees associated with the case.
Judge Rogers emphasized that Apple’s attempts to undermine competition were unacceptable. She characterized the company’s action as a deliberate defiance of a prior court decision, asserting that Apple created barriers to maintain a lucrative revenue stream that had already been determined to be anticompetitive.
The injunction stems from a 2021 legal battle with Epic Games, the developer behind the popular game Fortnite. Epic sued Apple after its game was removed from the App Store in 2020, alleging that Apple’s practices amounted to monopolistic behavior, including taking a 30% commission on in-app purchases and prohibiting alternative payment methods.
In her remarks, Judge Rogers noted that Apple was fully aware of its actions and deliberately opted for the most restrictive options available. She accused Apple Vice President of Finance Alex Roman of providing misleading testimony regarding the decisions surrounding a new 27% fee imposed on certain transactions.
The judge pointed out that Apple did consider the costs developers faced using alternative payment methods, which notably exceeded the discount that Apple had chosen to provide. Roman’s testimony suggested that until early 2024, Apple had no predetermined plan for the fee structure on linked purchases.
Previously, Judge Rogers had instructed Apple to modify its App Store policies to allow developers to direct users to their own websites for transactions outside of Apple’s ecosystem. Following this, the judge expressed contempt for Apple, indicating that the majority of its decisions regarding app-linking were anticompetitive.
The ruling opens the door for U.S. attorneys to evaluate whether to initiate criminal proceedings against Apple and Roman for contempt of court. Judge Rogers also alleged that Apple withheld information regarding a meeting that included CEO Tim Cook in June 2023, during which compliance with the earlier court order was discussed.
Upon reviewing newly revealed documents, Rogers concluded that there was evidence of an effort to obscure Apple’s decision-making processes, particularly those involving senior executives.
In response to the ruling, an Apple spokesperson expressed disagreement with the decision and stated the company intends to comply with the court order while pursuing an appeal.
Epic Games’ founder, Tim Sweeney, celebrated the ruling on social media, proclaiming an end to what he termed the “Apple Tax” on web transactions. He also announced that Fortnite would return to the U.S. App Store next week and hinted that, should Apple extend similar policies globally, the game would be reinstated internationally as well.
This decision marks a significant moment in the ongoing scrutiny of Apple’s App Store practices and could have far-reaching implications for developers and users alike.
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