Apple backs down and returns its developer account to Epic Games, the parent company of Fortnite

[tasnimsanika00]

The war between Apple and Epic Games, whose swords were drawn just a few days ago, is finally calming down. After the Apple company blocked the developer account of Fortnite's parent company last week , Epic Games once again has a clear path to return to the iPhone of the Cupertino company.

As Apple announced on Friday, Epic Games has pledged to abide by the rules of its platform , including the implementation of the Digital Markets Act (DMA) , which came into force on Thursday in the European Union. The gaming company later announced that it would continue to work on its own iPhone app store on European soil, which is possible under the DMA.

Apple had previously claimed that Epic Games' repeated breach of its platform rules had given it the power to cut ties with Fortnite's parent company and any of its subsidiaries at any time (and a US court had, in fact, ruled so).

However, the European Commission, which monitors the proper implementation of the DMA, immediately demanded explanations from Apple regarding the sudden withdrawal of Epic Games' developer account . And indeed, after the slap in the face from Brussels, Apple changed its mind and returned its developer account to Epic Games. This shows that the application of the DMA translates into concrete results, underlines Thierry Breton, Commissioner for the Internal Market of the European Union.

The conflict between Apple and Epic Games dates back to August 2020
The entry into force of the DMA forces Apple to authorize that applications from "marketplaces" other than the App Store can be installed on the iPhone. And Epic Games wants to take advantage of this circumstance to bolivia whatsapp list bring Fortnite back to the smartphone of the Cupertino company. The famous video game was banned from the Apple App Store in August 2020 after Epic Games broke a series of rules of the apple company .

The dispute between Epic Games and Apple was triggered after the video game developer used a trick to avoid the commission of between 15% and 30% that the apple company pockets for each transaction made through its App Store. Apple then made the decision to expel Epic Games from its App Store , and although Fortnite's parent company took the case to court, the judges finally ruled in favor of the company led by Tim Cook.

Apple's decision a few days ago to withdraw the developer account of Epic Games would apparently add fuel to the fierce criticism that Tim Sweeney, CEO of the video game company, is said to have leveled on X against the Cupertino company and its abuse of its dominant position in app stores, digital payments and browsers.

Sweeney specifically criticized the Cupertino company's new policy to comply with the precepts of the DMA . This policy, which has also been criticized by Spotify, hides a small trap that has Sweeney and other developers on edge. And that is that developers who benefit from the distribution of their apps in ecosystems other than the Apple App Store must pay a flat rate of 50 cents for each installation of those applications that exceed one million downloads per year. This inevitably puts obstacles in the way of "free to play" business models and restricts the type of applications that can bypass the Apple App Store.

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