Apple Seeks Early Motion to Reject Epic's Claim It's Being Denied iOS Access

As part of the Apple vs. Epic Games legal battle, Apple has filed a motion asking for a judge ruling on one of the ten claims that ‌Epic Games‌ had made against it. Specifically, Apple is seeking a partial judgment on the claim that iOS is an "essential facility" and denies Epic's claim that it has been unlawfully barred from accessing it through the App Store.

fortnite apple featured
The claim, specified in court filings as Count 2, refers to Epic's argument that it's been denied access to iOS, which it claims is an "essential facility" due to the fact it's been blocked access to the ‌App Store‌. The Count specifically accuses Apple of violating Section 2 of the Sherman Act through "its unlawful denial to Epic and other app distributors of an essential facility—access to iOS."

Apple is asking the judge to move forward with a judgment due to Epic's lack of "factual, expert, or legal support for its theory of essential facility" and that it has practically given up on attempting to prove it. Apple also cites testimony from one of Epic's own witnesses, who said during the trial regarding the ‌App Store‌ that nothing they say is referencing anything that can be deemed an "essential facility."

Epic’s experts did not opine on whether iOS is an essential facility, or whether Epic has been denied access to iOS. Rather, Dr. Evans admitted in his written direct testimony that Epic and other developers are provided "access to the tools and permissions for writing iOS apps."

And on the stand, Dr. Evans admitted that he was not "expressing any opinion on anything termed an essential facility or anything related to an essential facility claim in this case."

In the court filing, Apple says that the iOS ‌App Store‌ can easily be replicated and duplicated, and per the court's own definition, iOS is not an essential facility. Apple goes on to say that essential means "essential" and not what's "best," "most profitable or preferable."

Apple removed Fortnite and stripped Epic of access to its developer account in August of last year after it violated ‌App Store‌ Guidelines. To the court, Apple reiterated that Epic has access to the ‌App Store‌, despite its claim it's been unlawfully stripped of access to an "essential facility," as long as it follows the same rules that all developers are adhered to.

Apple notes that ‌Epic Games‌ had full access to the app distribution platform before it began "Project Liberty," Epic's codename for its legal fight against Apple.

There is no dispute that Epic actually has access to iOS. Epic, like all other developers, may obtain "access to the tools and permissions for writing iOS apps," and may distribute those apps through iOS, by agreeing to the DPLA. And Epic clearly did (prior to Project Liberty) distribute its apps through iOS and the App Store. So do millions of other developers.

Apple says that ‌Epic Games‌' real argument is not that it is illegally being denied access to the ‌App Store‌ and iOS, but that instead it does not like the terms and conditions that developers must follow on the platform.

The Epic Games vs. Apple trial officially started on May 3, and Apple is asking that its request for a partial judgment be entrained on May 24 or as soon as the court may hear its request.

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 14 New Features

Friday July 4, 2025 1:05 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are just over two months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models. Latest Rumors These rumors surfaced in June and July:Apple logo repositioned: Apple's logo may have a lower position on the back of the iPhone 17 Pro models, compared to previous...
iphone 16 pro models 1

Here's How the iPhone 17 Pro Max Will Compare to the iPhone 17 Pro

Saturday July 5, 2025 1:00 pm PDT by
Apple should unveil the iPhone 17 series in September, and there might be one bigger difference between the Pro and Pro Max models this year. As always, the Pro Max model will be larger than the Pro model:iPhone 17 Pro: 6.3-inch display iPhone 17 Pro Max: 6.9-inch displayGiven the Pro Max is physically larger than the Pro, it has more internal space, allowing for a larger battery and...
iPhone Car Key Kia

Here's Which Vehicles Offer iPhone Car Keys

Sunday July 6, 2025 3:03 pm PDT by
In 2020, Apple added a digital car key feature to its Wallet app, allowing users to lock, unlock, and start a compatible vehicle with an iPhone or Apple Watch. The feature is currently offered by select automakers, including Audi, BMW, Hyundai, Kia, Genesis, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, and a handful of others, and it is set to expand further. Apple has a web page with a list of vehicle models that ...
imac video apple feature

Apple Launching These 15+ Products Later This Year

Sunday July 6, 2025 8:05 am PDT by
The calendar has turned to July, meaning that 2025 is now more than half over. And while the summer months are often quiet for Apple, the company still has more than a dozen products coming later this year, according to rumors. Below, we have outlined at least 15 new Apple products that are expected to launch later this year, along with key rumored features for each. iPhone 17 Series iPho...
iOS 26 Feature

Everything New in iOS 26 Beta 3

Monday July 7, 2025 1:20 pm PDT by
Apple is continuing to refine and update iOS 26, and beta three features smaller changes than we saw in beta 2, plus further tweaks to the Liquid Glass design. Apple is gearing up for the next phase of beta testing, and the company has promised that a public beta is set to come out in July. Transparency In some apps like Apple Music, Podcasts, and the App Store, Apple has toned down the...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro to Reverse iPhone X Design Decision

Monday July 7, 2025 9:46 am PDT by
Since the iPhone X in 2017, all of Apple's highest-end iPhone models have featured either stainless steel or titanium frames, but it has now been rumored that this design decision will be coming to an end with the iPhone 17 Pro models later this year. In a post on Chinese social media platform Weibo today, the account Instant Digital said that the iPhone 17 Pro models will have an aluminum...
iphone 17 pro render majin bu

New iPhone 17 Pro Renders Highlight Apple Logo and MagSafe Design Changes

Sunday July 6, 2025 8:43 pm PDT by
New renders today provide the best look yet relocated Apple logo and redesigned MagSafe magnet array of the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max. Image via Majin Bu. Several of the design changes coming to the iPhone 17 Pro model have been rumored for some time, such as the elongated camera bump that spans the full width of the device, with the LiDAR Scanner and flash moving to the right side. ...
Prime Day 25 Feature Warm Triad

The Best Early Prime Day Deals on Apple Products

Saturday July 5, 2025 7:22 am PDT by
Amazon is soon to be back with its annual summertime Prime Day event, lasting for four days from July 8-11, the longest Prime Day yet. As it does every year, Prime Day offers shoppers a huge selection of deals across Amazon's storefront, and there are already many deals you can get on sale ahead of the event. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a ...
airpods pro 2

AirPods Pro 3 to Help Maintain Apple's Place in Earbud Market Amid Increasing Low-Cost Competition

Thursday July 3, 2025 7:25 am PDT by
Apple's position as the dominant force in the global true wireless stereo (TWS) earbud market is expected to continue through 2025, according to Counterpoint Research. The forecast outlines a 3% year-over-year increase in global TWS unit shipments for 2025, signaling a transition from rapid growth to a more mature phase for the category. While Apple is set to remain the leading brand by...

Top Rated Comments

Your Royal Highness Avatar
54 months ago
Essentially, Apple is saying to developers if you don’t follow the rules off with your head! And I agree. It’s their platform, their tools, their store and their rules. Maybe Epic should invest in making their own platform.
Score: 32 Votes (Like | Disagree)
krewger Avatar
54 months ago
I don’t understand how this is any different than a physical retailer. You want a product on the shelves, the retailer needs to profit from selling your item. If you try to circumvent the retailer from making money in their own store by selling it out of your own truck in their parking lot, they have every right to stop selling your product in your store. And for all those who say, but it’s my device I should choose what’s on it! I want to play smash bros on my Xbox but I had to buy a switch to play smash bros. I’d love to bring my electrical devices from England and plug them in to a US socket too, but it’s the wrong voltage and frequency.
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)
stocklen Avatar
54 months ago
surely this sentence is the crux of the issue:

"Apple says that Epic Games' real argument is not that it is illegally being denied access to the App Store and iOS, but that instead it does not like the terms and conditions that developers must follow on the platform. "


Im sorry I dont care whose side you are on..... Epic has made millions using the iOS app store so far and signed up to the terms and conditions of using it. It can rejoin the platform tomorrow if it chooses to follow the same rules that all the other developers have to follow. Its not being denied anything apart from the ability to make even more money off the platform that it already did.
I know this has been mentioned but other platforms that Epic peddles its wares on.. such as Playstation, Xbox, Google etc etc all have their fees and terms for using that platform - why should Apple be any different and why should a company dictate what another company chooses to charge when they have the choice themselves to use or not use the service.
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)
coredev Avatar
54 months ago

Essentially, Apple is saying to developers if you don’t follow the rules off with your head!
More like Apple is saying if you don't want to play by the rules, go play somewhere else.
BTW the same thing happened to Epic on the Google Play Store. Go figure.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BvizioN Avatar
54 months ago
Essential facility? Or Essential free money making platform that Epic wants it to be?
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
stocklen Avatar
54 months ago

I don’t understand how this is any different than a physical retailer. You want a product on the shelves, the retailer needs to profit from selling your item. If you try to circumvent the retailer from making money in their own store by selling it out of your own truck in their parking lot, they have every right to stop selling your product in your store. And for all those who say, but it’s my device I should choose what’s on it! I want to play smash bros on my Xbox but I had to buy a switch to play smash bros. I’d love to bring my electrical devices from England and plug them in to a US socket too, but it’s the wrong voltage and frequency.
i agree

Im surprised at some of the anti-apple sentiment in here - especially for an Apple centric forum.

Im not defending apple as such... they are rich enough and make plenty of money to not need my defence...

However they created the iOS devices, they created the App store, and they set the terms for people to come in and use it to sell their software. Expensive? cheap? ive no idea but the developers go into it with eyes wide open and accepting the terms and conditions. In return they get the biggest global platform with the potential to earn millions in revenue - im pretty sure that Apple can and must charge what they like for the privilege.

Epic's behaviour has been childish - that anti apple ad was not just cobbled together and released the moment they ran into trouble.. no.. they preemptively picked this fight with apple... and apple made several attempts to appease the situation with the option of removing the developer account as the last resort and Epic dug their heels in and refused.

If I was Epic, and I really wanted this fight... then I would have at least acquiesced for the time being and left Fortnite on the app store without the rule-breaking code in it - and then picked the fight. They didn't do this and they are paying the price. Im pretty sure that Fortnite fans are getting their fix elsewhere on other platforms and Epic aren't really feeling much of a pinch here.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)