In a major blow to Apple, U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled on Wednesday that the tech company willfully violated a previous court order aimed at promoting fair competition within its App Store. This ruling stems from the long-running legal dispute with Fortnite maker Epic Games, which had challenged Apple’s restrictive app policies and hefty in-app purchase fees.
“This is an injunction, not a negotiation,” Judge Rogers wrote in her 80-page ruling, emphasising that Apple cannot choose how and when to comply with court mandates.
Apple faces criminal contempt investigation
The judge’s ruling went beyond civil contempt. She referred Apple and its vice-president of finance, Alex Roman, to federal prosecutors for a criminal contempt investigation. Rogers accused Roman of giving false and misleading testimony in court, saying his statements were "replete with misdirection and outright lies."
Apple disagrees, Epic celebrates
Apple responded with a statement: "We strongly disagree with the decision. We will comply with the court’s order and we will appeal."
On the other hand, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney hailed the decision as a "major win for developers and consumers", saying it forces Apple to compete rather than dominate.
Epic plans return of Fortnite on iOS
Following the court ruling, Sweeney announced plans to bring Fortnite back to the App Store next week, marking a dramatic return after Apple removed the game in 2020 for bypassing its payment system.
Apple’s 27 per cent workaround sparks controversy
Although the 2021 injunction allowed developers to offer external payment links, Apple imposed a new 27 per cent fee on such transactions, just slightly less than its in-app 30% cut. Developers and Epic argued this move was a clear attempt to undermine the court order.
Additionally, Apple displayed “scare screens” warning users about the risks of external links, which the court found to be “commercially unusable” and anticompetitive.
Immediate changes ordered for Apple’s App Store
The judge ruled that Apple is immediately barred from blocking developers from linking to external payments or charging extra commissions on those transactions.
Although the criminal case decision is left to federal prosecutors, Rogers stressed: “Apple’s attempts to interfere with competition will not be tolerated.”
Inputs from Reuters
