A federal judge in California ruled that Apple violated a court order requiring it to allow greater competition in app downloads and payment options within its App Store. U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers stated that Apple disregarded her injunction issued in an antitrust lawsuit filed by Epic Games, the creator of “Fortnite.” The judge referred Apple and its vice president of finance, Alex Roman, to federal prosecutors for a criminal contempt investigation, highlighting that Roman’s testimony contained “misdirection” and “outright lies.”
In her 80-page ruling, Gonzalez Rogers emphasized the seriousness of Apple’s actions, stating that such interference with competition would not be tolerated. Apple expressed disagreement with the decision, pledging to comply and appeal the ruling.
Epic CEO Tim Sweeney viewed the judge’s order as a crucial victory for developers and consumers, citing that it compels Apple to compete with alternative payment services. He indicated that Epic plans to reintroduce Fortnite to the App Store soon, after being removed for allowing users to access better payment options outside Apple’s ecosystem.
The judge had previously found in 2021 that Apple violated California competition law and mandated more freedom for developers to direct users to alternative payment methods. Epic Games later reported that Apple was “blatantly” violating this order, including imposing new fees on purchases made outside its ecosystem and warning users about external links.
Gonzalez Rogers responded by barring Apple from obstructing developers’ communications with users and ordered the company to cease its new commissions on off-app purchases, noting the severity of Apple’s conduct and stating that any potential criminal case would be left to the executive branch to decide.
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