Epic Games is in hot water after it faced the ban hammer from both Apple App Store and Google Play Store. Notoriously known for clashing with Apple’s App Store royalties, Fortnite was banned after Epic Games implemented its own in-app payment system that bypassed Apple’s royalties. The same is the case with why it was banned at Google Play Store.
As a response, Epic Games filed an antitrust lawsuit to both Apple and Google. For Apple, Fortnite cites that Apple is monopolizing the app market, with the developer releasing a protest video mocking Apple’s 1984 ad, calling for players to #FreeFortnite. For its case against Google, Epic Games claimed that Google forced OnePlus to cut off a deal that should have included a special Fortnite launcher for OnePlus phones.
Despite the ban, both Apple and Google said that they are open to resolving their issues with Epic Games. “The fact that their business interests now lead them to push for a special arrangement does not change the fact that these guidelines create a level playing field for all developers and make the store safe for all users. We will make every effort to work with Epic to resolve these violations so they can return Fortnite to the App Store,” Apple’s statement said.
“While Fortnite remains available on Android, we can no longer make it available on Play because it violates our policies. However, we welcome the opportunity to continue our discussions with Epic and bring Fortnite back to Google Play,” Google’s statement said.
Epic Game’s provocative move has an effect on the pricing of its in-game purchases: the Verge explains that for Fortnite’s 1000 V-Bucks, it costs $9.99 if purchased via the App Store’s payment system and $7.99 via Epic Games’ payment system. The $2 savings, as Epic claims, will go to the consumers and not the company—making it more of a pro-consumer move.Â
