Apple forced to ditch 30% fee on outside links
Another bite out of the Apple
- Apple may now be forced to ditch any commissions for outside payments
- That includes ditching scare screens and not limiting developers' use of outside links
- This comes as part of a major ruling in the ongoing Epic vs Apple saga
It's a day ending with 'y', so you know what that means! Yes, it's another entry in the ongoing Epic v Apple saga we all thought had been put to bed a long time ago. But now it seems the iOS owner and iPhone manufacturer may be forced to drop a controversial 30% commission on links to alternative payments outside the App Store.
What does this mean for you and me? Well, in short, it means that Apple is now pretty decisively the loser in the original Epic v Apple case, which was kicked off when Tim Sweeney started allowing players to make in-app purchases directly from Epic Games for their ever-popular battle royale shooter Fortnite (for a substantial discount).
Previously, Apple pretty much had to ditch any fees or other limitations on outside linking in the EU, but the US had still leaned relatively in their favour.
Now, however, Apple cannot do any of the following: Impose a fee on any purchases made outside an app, restrdrive developer's placements or formatting of links, limit the use of 'calls to action' (i.e. banners to tell you how much you could save), exclude certain apps or developers, interfere in consumer choice with 'scare screens' and must now use 'neutral messaging' to tell users they'll be going to a third-party site.
In short, while Epic may have lost a few battles, it's pretty much won the war. Apple plans to appeal the decision (naturally), but it seems unlikely that they'll be able to change the minds of the judges making these rulings.
With the Epic Games Store for mobile now taking root on Android and iOS in the EU, and on Android in the US, it could only be a matter of time before the iOS App Store becomes less important.
