Epic’s long-running battle with Apple over the way forward for Fortnite on iOS units has taken one other flip, with Epic accusing Apple of blocking its Fortnite submission so it may possibly’t launch the sport to the U.S. App Retailer.
Earlier this month, Epic boss Tim Sweeney stated Fortnite would return to the U.S. iOS App Retailer and iPhones in a matter of days after a major courtroom ruling.
On April 30, a U.S. Federal District Courtroom in California discovered that Apple wilfully violated a courtroom order within the Epic Video games v. Apple case that required Apple to allow builders to supply their clients other ways to make purchases outdoors apps.
In January, IGN reported on how Sweeney had spent billions of {dollars} preventing Apple and Google over the best way the businesses run their app shops. Sweeney advised IGN on the time that he thought of it a long-term funding in Epic and Fortnite’s future, insisting Epic might afford to maintain up the battle for many years to come back.
Sweeney’s ongoing battle to get Fortnite again on iPhones and Android telephones whereas avoiding paying retailer charges is well-documented. The gist is that this: Epic doesn’t need to pay the now normal 30% retailer charges on income made on cell video games. As a substitute, it desires to run the likes of Fortnite via its personal cell retailer, the Epic Video games Retailer, with out Apple and Google getting in the best way and gobbling up its revenue. Again in 2020, this dispute ended up with Fortnite blocked from launch on iOS.
After Sweeney’s tweet it was anticipated that Fortnite would return to iOS, however to this point… nothing. And now, Epic has issued a press release to IGN offering an replace:
“Apple has blocked our Fortnite submission so we can not launch to the U.S. App Retailer or to the Epic Video games Retailer for iOS within the European Union. Now, sadly, Fortnite on iOS shall be offline worldwide till Apple unblocks it.”
Based mostly on this assertion, Fortnite will not be solely blocked from the U.S. App Retailer, however Fortnite on iOS is offline worldwide. That’s a horrible scenario for Epic, which has already misplaced out on billions of {dollars} of income within the 5 years since Fortnite was booted off iPhones. Now, Tim Sweeney is tweeting at Apple boss Tim Prepare dinner to attempt to get him to alter his thoughts.
“Hello Tim. How about in the event you let our mutual clients entry Fortnite? Only a thought.”
Hello Tim. How about in the event you let our mutual clients entry Fortnite? Only a thought.
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) May 15, 2025
After the courtroom ruling, Apple was referred to federal prosecutors for violating the U.S. courtroom order. “Apple’s continued makes an attempt to intervene with competitors won’t be tolerated,” U.S. District Choose Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers stated. “That is an injunction, not a negotiation. There aren’t any do-overs as soon as a celebration willfully disregards a courtroom order.”
The Choose referred Apple and certainly one of its executives, Alex Roman, vice chairman of finance, to federal prosecutors for a felony contempt investigation into their conduct within the case. Roman gave testimony concerning the steps Apple took to conform along with her injunction that was “replete with misdirection and outright lies,” the choose wrote.
In a press release issued on the time, Apple stated: “we strongly disagree with the choice. We are going to adjust to the courtroom’s order and we are going to enchantment.” Final week, Apple requested the U.S. appeals courtroom to pause the ruling within the Epic Video games case.
Wesley is the UK Information Editor for IGN. Discover him on Twitter at @wyp100. You’ll be able to attain Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].