Supreme Court rejects Epic v. Apple antitrust case

The Supreme Court has denied a request to hear an antitrust dispute between Apple and Fortnite publisher Epic Games. It rejected two petitions, one from each company, this morning — leaving the case largely, but not entirely, a win for Apple.

Epic v. Apple began in 2020 after Epic implemented its own payment system for Fortnite’s virtual currency, bypassing Apple’s commission on in-app purchases. Apple banned Epic from its iOS App Store and Epic filed a lawsuit in response, claiming the App Store — and Apple’s overall walled-garden approach to iOS — violated US antitrust laws. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers rejected most of Apple’s claims and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals largely affirmed the decision.

Even so, both rulings found that Apple had acted anticompetitively by barring developers from telling users about other payment methods. Apple was ordered to let them allow links and other “calls to action” that would bypass Apple’s payment system, discontinuing what are known as anti-steering policies. But the company spent years delaying parts of the change with legal appeals, winning a reprieve while the Supreme Court considered the case. Today’s denial seemingly runs out that clock, requiring Apple to reconsider the future of its anti-steering rules.

Conversely, Epic remains unsuccessful in its bid to make Apple allow it back onto the App Store or let developers distribute apps via sideloading or third-party stores. The outcome is strikingly different from its recent victory over Apple’s rival Google in a California jury trial — although Google has said it will appeal the decision. Apple may also face more pressure to open up iOS in Europe; it’s currently fighting attempts to regulate the App Store under the EU’s Digital Markets Act, which goes into effect on March 7th.

In a thread of social media posts, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney said that “the court battle to open iOS to competing stores and payments is lost in the United States,” dubbing it “a sad outcome for all developers.” But he celebrated the end of anti-steering rules, urging developers to “begin exercising their court-established right to tell US customers about better prices on the web.” Apple did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the Supreme Court’s decision.

Correction 11:00AM ET: The DMA goes into effect March 7th, not March 6th. We regret the error.

Update 11:00AM ET: Added statement from Tim Sweeney.

The Supreme Court has denied a request to hear an antitrust dispute between Apple and Fortnite publisher Epic Games. It rejected two petitions, one from each company, this morning — leaving the case largely, but not entirely, a win for Apple.

Epic v. Apple began in 2020 after Epic implemented its own payment system for Fortnite’s virtual currency, bypassing Apple’s commission on in-app purchases. Apple banned Epic from its iOS App Store and Epic filed a lawsuit in response, claiming the App Store — and Apple’s overall walled-garden approach to iOS — violated US antitrust laws. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers rejected most of Apple’s claims and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals largely affirmed the decision.

Even so, both rulings found that Apple had acted anticompetitively by barring developers from telling users about other payment methods. Apple was ordered to let them allow links and other “calls to action” that would bypass Apple’s payment system, discontinuing what are known as anti-steering policies. But the company spent years delaying parts of the change with legal appeals, winning a reprieve while the Supreme Court considered the case. Today’s denial seemingly runs out that clock, requiring Apple to reconsider the future of its anti-steering rules.

Conversely, Epic remains unsuccessful in its bid to make Apple allow it back onto the App Store or let developers distribute apps via sideloading or third-party stores. The outcome is strikingly different from its recent victory over Apple’s rival Google in a California jury trial — although Google has said it will appeal the decision. Apple may also face more pressure to open up iOS in Europe; it’s currently fighting attempts to regulate the App Store under the EU’s Digital Markets Act, which goes into effect on March 7th.

In a thread of social media posts, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney said that “the court battle to open iOS to competing stores and payments is lost in the United States,” dubbing it “a sad outcome for all developers.” But he celebrated the end of anti-steering rules, urging developers to “begin exercising their court-established right to tell US customers about better prices on the web.” Apple did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the Supreme Court’s decision.

Correction 11:00AM ET: The DMA goes into effect March 7th, not March 6th. We regret the error.

Update 11:00AM ET: Added statement from Tim Sweeney.