Epic Games

By MacRumors Staff on December 12, 2023

Epic Games is the software company behind the massively popular game Fortnite, as well as creator of the Unreal Engine game engine that is used by numerous other game developers.

Epic became a major focus of the Apple news scene in mid-2020 when the company deployed a direct payment option for Fortnite's in-game currency, in violation of App Store and Google Play rules.

The situation escalated, with Apple quickly pulling Fortnite from the App Store and terminating Epic's developer account. Lawsuits were filed on both sides, and the situation continues to play out with Fortnite still missing from the App Store.

Read more in our timeline of events surrounding the ongoing dispute.

Epic Games Articles

Epic Games Wins Antitrust Lawsuit Against Google Play Store

Tuesday December 12, 2023 3:41 am PST by Tim Hardwick

Epic Games has won its antitrust lawsuit against Google, after the nine-member jury in the case unanimously agreed that the tech giant abused its power by operating an app store monopoly and charging developers unduly high fees. The unanimous verdict came after three hours of deliberation following a four-week trial looking into Google's Play store. Among Epic's allegations were that Google...

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Epic Games Lays Off Over 800 Employees as Apple Legal Battle Drags On

Thursday September 28, 2023 12:54 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Epic Games, the company behind popular video game Fortnite, is laying off 830 employees or approximately 16 percent of its workforce. The layoffs come amid Epic's ongoing legal battle with Apple, which started way back in 2020. Just this week, ‌Epic Games‌ asked the Supreme Court to hear the case, a request that follows two major losses and likely hundreds of thousands or more in legal fees. ‌...

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Apple Appeals Epic Games Ruling Over 'Anti-Steering' Provisions to U.S. Supreme Court

Thursday September 28, 2023 8:52 am PDT by Eric Slivka

Just a day after Epic Games appealed one portion of its legal dispute with Apple to the U.S. Supreme Court, Apple has now done the same for the portion that was ruled in Epic's favor, reports Bloomberg. The dispute between Apple and Epic dates back to 2020 with Epic seeking to overturn Apple's App Store rules requiring content purchases within iOS apps to go through Apple, which takes a 15%...

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Epic Games Asks Supreme Court to Hear Apple Case

Wednesday September 27, 2023 3:44 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Epic Games today filed a petition for a writ of certiorari with the Supreme Court, which basically means the company is asking the Supreme Court to make a ruling in its ongoing legal battle with Apple. The Supreme Court is the last stop for ‌Epic Games‌ after it lost an appeal earlier this year. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in April 2023 sided with the lower court and ruled that...

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Apple Doesn't Have to Change App Store Rules Yet, Rules Supreme Court in Ongoing Epic Dispute

Wednesday August 9, 2023 10:43 am PDT by Juli Clover

Apple does not need to change its "anti-steering" App Store rules while its legal dispute with Epic Games continues to play out, the U.S. Supreme Court decided today. Apple can maintain the ‌App Store‌ rules as is while the Supreme Court considers its appeal, according to Bloomberg Law. Apple's anti-steering rules prevent developers from directing customers to make purchases for digital...

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Judge Lets Apple Further Delay Implementing App Store Rule Changes From Ongoing Epic Dispute

Monday July 17, 2023 3:09 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Apple does not yet have to implement changes to its "anti-steering" App Store rules that would allow developers to direct customers to purchase options outside the ‌App Store‌. As noted by The Verge, Apple was today granted a motion that prevents it from having to make ‌App Store‌ changes for 90 days, giving the company time to ask the Supreme Court to hear the case. Apple and Epic Games...

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Epic Games Loses Again in Battle With Apple Over App Store Rules

Monday April 24, 2023 11:55 am PDT by Juli Clover

Epic Games and Apple have been fighting over Apple's App Store rules since 2020, when ‌Epic Games‌ opted to blatantly violate the guidelines that prevent apps from avoiding the in-app purchase system. ‌Epic Games‌ did so with the aim of kicking off a long legal battle, but it has not gone in Epic's favor. In 2021, the judge overseeing the case sided with Apple, concluding that Apple was not...

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Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney Teases Fortnite Returning to iOS in 2023 as Legal Battle Continues

Monday January 2, 2023 5:09 am PST by Sami Fathi

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney has teased a return of Fortnite to iOS in 2023, nearly three years after the best-selling game was removed from the App Store for violating platform rules, marking the start of a contentious and high-profile legal battle. In a tweet to celebrate the new year, Sweeney said, "Next year on iOS!" followed by an image of a Fortnite character looking up at fireworks that ...

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Apple and Epic Games Return to Court to Fight Over App Store Rules

Monday November 14, 2022 12:44 pm PST by Juli Clover

The ongoing legal battle between Apple and Epic Games resumed today, with lawyers for both companies meeting in the United States Court of Appeals to attempt to get the initial ruling from last year overturned. The ‌Epic Games‌ v. Apple saga started way back in 2020 when ‌Epic Games‌ started allowing Fortnite players to make purchases directly in the app, skirting the in-app purchase rules....

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Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney Criticizes Apple Over App Store Price Increases

Wednesday October 5, 2022 11:21 am PDT by Juli Clover

Apple is today beginning to implement App Store pricing increases across all territories and countries that use the euro, with the hike attributed to the euro's weakness against the U.S. dollar. Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney, whose company is currently embroiled in a legal battle with Apple, spoke up on the price update and said Apple had no justification for it. In a statement, Sweeney likened ...

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Apple Argues to Get App Store Injunction Thrown Out in Epic v. Apple Appeal

Friday July 15, 2022 11:37 am PDT by Juli Clover

Apple today submitted its final filing in the ongoing Apple v. Epic legal battle, which is playing out in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Both Apple and Epic Games chose to appeal the original ruling as neither company was satisfied with the outcome. The appeal battle has been ongoing since January, but it is wrapping up with Apple's cross-appeal brief, which...

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Apple Not Among Founding Metaverse Standards Forum Members

Wednesday June 22, 2022 3:54 am PDT by Hartley Charlton

Apple is not among the founding members of a new "metaverse" standards body that includes Meta, Microsoft, Sony, Epic Games, Nvidia, Adobe, and others (via Reuters). Announced in a press release, "the Metaverse Standards Forum brings together companies and standards organizations to foster alignment on requirements and priorities for metaverse interoperability standards, and accelerate their ...

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Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney Calls Apple's App Store a 'Disservice to Developers'

Thursday May 26, 2022 2:35 am PDT by Sami Fathi

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney has called Apple's App Store, which has helped app makers earn over $260 billion since its launch, a "disservice to developers" that forces them to treat their apps as "sub-par." Sweeney made the comments in an exclusive interview with the Financial Times, where he repeated ‌Epic Games‌' previous talking points about Apple and how it is "anti-competitive" and...

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Epic Games Says Court 'Reached the Wrong Answer' and Made 'Multiple Legal Errors' in Apple Fight

Wednesday May 25, 2022 2:08 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Epic Games and Apple are continuing with their legal dispute, and today, ‌Epic Games‌ filed its Appeal Reply and Cross-Appeal Response Brief, following Apple's appeal filing back in March. In the filing, ‌Epic Games‌ reiterates many of the same arguments that it made during the trial. The company believes that the district court "reached the wrong answer" and made "multiple legal errors."...

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Fortnite Comes to iPhones and iPads Through Xbox Cloud Gaming

Thursday May 5, 2022 10:22 am PDT by Juli Clover

Microsoft today announced that Fortnite is available through its Xbox Cloud Gaming service, which means iPhone and iPad users can play Fortnite for free with just a Microsoft account. Fortnite is the first free-to-play game that has been aded to Xbox Cloud Gaming, which is still available in a beta capacity. Xbox Cloud Gaming is available in 26 countries and Fortnite can be played on Android ...

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Epic Lost Trial Due to Flawed Argument, Not Legal Error, Apple Says in Appeals Filing

Thursday March 24, 2022 4:32 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Apple's legal battle with Epic Games is continuing on, and today, the Cupertino company filed an opening brief with the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Both Apple and ‌Epic Games‌ opted to appeal the original ruling in the Epic Games v. Apple case as neither company was satisfied with the outcome. Epic lost, while Apple was subject to App Store changes that are on hold...

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Hands On: Testing Fortnite on iOS Using GeForce NOW

Thursday February 17, 2022 11:54 am PST by Dan Barbera

Fortnite has been unavailable to play on the iPhone and iPad since Apple banned it from the App Store in August 2020 amid an ongoing legal battle with Epic Games, but the battle royale game is coming back to iOS devices thanks to Nvidia's GeForce NOW gaming service. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. GeForce NOW is a browser-based gaming service that will allow ‌iPhone‌...

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Epic Games Appeals Ruling in Apple Lawsuit, Claims Court Made Errors

Thursday January 20, 2022 10:29 am PST by Juli Clover

Epic Games today kicked off its appeal of the judge's decision in the Epic v. Apple lawsuit, filing an opening brief with the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Both Apple and ‌Epic Games‌ have decided to appeal the original ruling as neither company was satisfied with the outcome. ‌Epic Games‌ wanted the court to force Apple to support third-party App Stores, which did...

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Fortnite Coming Back to iOS Soon Thanks to Nvidia's GeForce NOW Service

Thursday January 13, 2022 11:19 am PST by Juli Clover

With the Apple vs. Epic Games lawsuit continuing on, there are no signs that Apple has any intention of allowing popular battle royale game Fortnite to return to the App Store on iPhone and iPad. ‌Epic Games‌ has found a workaround though, by partnering up with Nvidia. GeForce NOW, Nvidia's streaming gaming service, will soon add Fortnite support, allowing Fortnite to be played through a...

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Apple Wins Stay in Epic Case, Won't Have to Implement App Store Changes Tomorrow

Wednesday December 8, 2021 11:45 am PST by Juli Clover

Apple has successfully won a stay on an injunction that would have required it to make sweeping App Store changes as soon as December 9, so for the time being, Apple can continue to require developers to use its in-app purchase system without offering alternatives. The judge in the ongoing Epic v. Apple lawsuit had ordered Apple to allow developers to provide customers with alternatives to...

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