Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney will appear next week at a conference in South Korea to discuss the fairness of mobile app platforms and ecosystems amid his company's ongoing tension with Apple, according to a press release.
Sweeney will be joined by other members and representatives of the "Coalition for App Fairness," a group of developers and companies lobbying against Apple's "anti-competitive" App Store rules. The conference, "Global Conference on Mobile App Ecosystem Fairness," kicks off on Monday, November 15, in Seoul, South Korea.
South Korea has been the scene of recent legislation that could change the App Store in fundamental ways. Earlier in August, South Korea passed a bill that prohibits Apple, and other owners of mobile app distribution platforms, from forcing developers to use their own payment method. For the App Store, that would result in Apple no longer requiring developers to use its in-app purchase system.
Apple has said the new change would put users at risk, decrease user trust in purchases made within apps, and make it harder for certain features, such as parental controls, to be implemented.
The Telecommunications Business Act will put users who purchase digital goods from other sources at risk of fraud, undermine their privacy protections, make it difficult to manage their purchases, and features like "Ask to Buy" and Parental Controls will become less effective. We believe user trust in App Store purchases will decrease as a result of this legislation — leading to fewer opportunities for the over 482,000 registered developers in Korea who have earned more than KRW8.55 trillion to date with Apple.
Following the passage of the bill, Epic Games had asked Apple to reinstate Fortnite onto the App Store in South Korea. Fortnite was removed from the App Store in August of 2020 after Epic implemented a direct-payment method for in-app purchases, a clear violation of Apple's App Store rules. The new law in South Korea is yet to go into effect, and even when it does, Apple had said that it has no obligation to reinstate Epic's developer account that was terminated prior to when it became law.
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
Tuesday April 22, 2025 10:22 am PDT by Juli Clover
Apple plans to release an all-new super thin iPhone this year, debuting it alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. We've seen pictures of dummy models, cases, and renders with the design, but Lewis Hilsenteger of Unbox Therapy today showed off newer dummy models that give us a better idea of just how thin the "iPhone 17 Air" will be.
The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be ...
Tuesday April 22, 2025 5:01 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
A developer has demonstrated Windows 11 ARM running on an M2 iPad Air using emulation, which has become much easier since the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) regulations came into effect.
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Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup.
If you skipped the iPhone...
Apple seeded the third beta of iOS 18.5 to developers today, and so far the software update includes only a few minor changes.
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Tuesday April 22, 2025 4:08 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple will unveil the iPhone 17 Pro in a new Sky Blue color, the same color that debuted on the latest M4 MacBook Air models Apple released in March. That's according to the leaker Majin Bu.
Concept mockup from Majin Bu
Writing on his website, Bu claims that "sources close to the supply chain confirm that several iPhone 17 Pro prototypes have been made in various colors, with Sky Blue...
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.
Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025:
Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and ...
No matter how I feel about the particulars in this case, Sweeney is the worst possible ambassador for his goals and ideas because he’s always been such a flaming ?hole. Someone should really tell him.
Right on. People like this "supporting my best interests" I really don't want nor need.
Anyone who thinks any massive, multinational corporation is their buddy or has their best interests at heart is a fool.
I will never understand the blind adoration and unshakable loyalty some people have for their favorite brands, because I assure you all those warm fuzzies only ever run in one direction.
