Apple may soon face legal scrutiny for its refusal to reinstate Fortnite on the US App Store if a resolution with Epic Games is not achieved by May 27.
Three weeks ago, Epic’s CEO indicated that the company planned to resubmit its flagship game to the App Store, following a protracted legal battle with Apple that has lasted nearly five years. However, Apple remains uncooperative during its ongoing appeal of a recent court ruling that favored Epic.
US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, in Oakland, California, stated in a Monday order that Apple is fully capable of resolving the issue without additional hearings or briefings. She added that an Apple representative must appear in court if her intervention becomes necessary.
Since 2020, the two companies have engaged in a contentious dispute regarding App Store fees levied on developers, alongside various policies governing Apple’s software marketplace. The removal of the Fortnite app from the App Store has impeded access for over one billion iPhone and iPad users.
Epic has not provided any comments regarding this latest development, and a representative from Apple did not respond to requests for clarification.
Judge Gonzalez Rogers did not categorically state that the app must be reinstated, yet it seems unlikely that alternative measures would meet her expectations. She has granted Apple until Wednesday to disclose which executives will be prepared to address the issue at hand. Phil Schiller oversees the App Store, with a business team led by Carson Oliver and an app review team managed by Trystan Kosmynka.
On April 30, Gonzalez Rogers delivered a significant blow to Apple by ruling that the company violated a 2021 order requiring the App Store to allow third-party payment options, and instructed it to cease imposing commissions on transactions outside of its platform.
Apple is currently seeking a stay from an appeals court regarding this ruling while it prepares to challenge it.
In a separate claim, Epic accused Apple on Friday of preventing Fortnite from being available on third-party marketplaces across the European Union, an allegation Apple denied.
In her ruling from April 30, Gonzalez Rogers highlighted that an Apple executive had lied under oath and subsequently referred the matter to federal prosecutors to explore whether Apple engaged in criminal contempt of court by disregarding her previous ruling from 2021.
The case at hand involves Epic Games Inc. v. Apple Inc., filed under case number 20-cv-05640 in the US District Court for the Northern District of California (Oakland).
(This article has not been modified by NDTV staff and is automatically generated from a syndicated source.)
