Epic vs. Apple Takes a Twist As 35 US States and Department of Justice Weigh in to Back 'Fortnite' Maker

Apple is stifling competition with its monopoly on app distribution through the App Store, attorneys general for 35 states told a California appeals court on Thursday.

app store blue banner epic 1
The joint statement was submitted into the appeals process that is ongoing following the judge's decision in the Epic v. Apple lawsuit, with the attorneys general siding with the "Fortnite" video game maker on the issue, reports Reuters.

"Apple's conduct has harmed and is harming mobile app-developers and millions of citizens," the states said.

"Meanwhile, Apple continues to monopolize app distribution and in-app payment solutions for iPhones, stifle competition, and amass supracompetitive profits within the almost trillion-dollar-a-year smartphone industry."

According to the Financial Times [paywalled], the US Department of Justice also challenged last year's ruling, saying in its own submission that the court had "committed several legal errors that could imperil effective antitrust enforcement, especially in the digital economy."

The DoJ said the court had interpreted the Sherman Act, an 1890 law prohibiting anti-competitive behavior, "narrowly and wrongly, in ways that would leave many anti-competitive agreements and practices outside their protections."

The judge's decision in the Oakland, California case mostly ruled against Epic last year, although both Apple and ‌Epic Games‌ have decided to appeal the original ruling as neither company was satisfied with the outcome. ‌‌Epic Games‌‌ wanted the court to force Apple to support third-party App Stores, which did not happen.

U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that the 15% to 30% commission that Apple charges some app makers through its in-app payment system did not violate antitrust law.

Along with the states, professors and activist groups also weighed in through court filings that described legal arguments in support of Epic, according to Reuters.

The states said in their filing that the lower court erred when it decided that a key antitrust law did not apply to non-negotiable contracts Apple makes developers sign, a claim Epic also made when it first filed its appeal earlier this month.

"Paradoxically, firms with enough market power to unilaterally impose contracts would be protected from antitrust scrutiny — precisely the firms whose activities give the most cause for antitrust concern," they said in the joint statement.

Apple, which is expected to reply in March, said on Thursday it was confident Epic's challenge would fail, and that it remained "committed to ensuring the ‌App Store‌ is a safe and trusted marketplace for consumers and a great opportunity for developers."

Popular Stories

iOS 26 Feature

iOS 26.1 to iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Wednesday October 1, 2025 1:26 pm PDT by
iOS 26 was released last month, but the software train never stops, and iOS 26.1 beta testing is already underway. So far, iOS 26.1 makes both Apple Intelligence and Live Translation on compatible AirPods available in additional languages, and it includes some other minor changes across Apple Music, Calendar, Photos, and Safari. More features and changes will follow in future versions,...
space black mbp

Here's Every New Apple Product That Leaked Yesterday

Wednesday October 1, 2025 8:27 am PDT by
A handful of upcoming Apple products leaked yesterday, through a combination of YouTube videos out of Russia and U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) documents that were released, despite Apple's confidentiality requests. The leaked products include an iPad Pro with an M5 chip, as well as updated MacBook Pro and Apple Vision Pro models. All of these devices had already been rumored...
iPhone 17 vs Air and Pros Feature

New iPhones See 'Stronger Than Expected' Demand With One Exception

Thursday October 2, 2025 7:26 am PDT by
Nearly two weeks after the iPhone 17 series launched, analysts at investment banking firm Morgan Stanley said demand for the devices has been "modestly stronger than we originally expected," based on a combination of extended shipping estimates on Apple's online store and information it gathered from Apple's supply chain. There has been strong early demand for the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro,...
apple wallet drivers license feature iPhone 15 pro teal 1

Apple's iPhone Driver's License Feature Now Available in 11 U.S. States

Tuesday September 30, 2025 6:40 am PDT by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Apple recently revealed that the feature would soon be available in North Dakota, and starting today, the feature has officially gone...
Tim Cook Rainbow

Apple Event in October? Here's What to Expect

Monday September 29, 2025 9:31 am PDT by
Apple's annual iPhone event is in the rearview mirror, but rumors suggest the company plans to release a handful of additional products before the year ends. Will there be another Apple event this October? We discuss the possibility below. Apple in October Apple's most recent October events were in 2021 and 2023. In 2022 and 2024, Apple did not host an October event. Instead, it...
fcc vision pro leak

FCC Accidentally Leaks Apple's Next Vision Pro

Tuesday September 30, 2025 3:48 pm PDT by
The United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has seemingly confirmed Apple's work on an updated version of the Vision Pro headset. One of several documents the FCC shared today references an Apple-designed "Head Mounted Device" with a model number of A3416. An included image confirms the device is a Vision Pro. The FCC's uploads are transmission tests, SAR test reports, and...
macbook pro prime day 2025

FCC Leaks Upcoming MacBook Pro and More

Tuesday September 30, 2025 1:58 pm PDT by
The United States Federal Communications Commission has confirmed Apple's work on a new version of the MacBook Pro and several other products, leaking details on the devices ahead of launch. The FCC published documents that reference model numbers that do not correspond with existing devices. A3434, for example, references an unreleased MacBook Pro, while other numbers are likely for...
Apple 2025 Thumb 1

Apple's 2025 Product Roadmap: What's Still Coming

Wednesday October 1, 2025 3:56 pm PDT by
Apple's two big yearly events, WWDC and the iPhone launch, are done and over with, but there are still some new products that we're expecting to see before the end of the year. Apple TV The Apple TV hasn't been updated since 2022, so it's due for a refresh. It doesn't look like Apple is going to change the design of its set-top box, but we can expect a faster chip Apple code suggests...
maxresdefault

New iPad Pro With M5 Chip Leaked in Unboxing Video

Tuesday September 30, 2025 8:39 am PDT by
An apparent unboxing video for an unannounced iPad Pro with the M5 chip was uploaded to YouTube today by Russian channel Wylsacom. The same YouTube account leaked the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M4 chip before it was announced by Apple last year, so this is likely a legitimate leak. Based on the box shown in the video, this appears to be a 13-inch iPad Pro with an M5 chip, 256GB of...
iOS 26 Everything New Feature

26 Hidden iOS 26 Tricks to Change How You Use Your iPhone

Wednesday October 1, 2025 9:16 am PDT by
Apple released iOS 26 in mid-September, bringing a range of new features and changes to iPhones across the globe. But not all of the included improvements have been showcased with Apple's typical fanfare, and many are likely to have been overlooked. Below, we've highlighted 26 lesser known additions and enhancements that could potentially change how you use your iPhone on a daily basis. Got...

Top Rated Comments

senttoschool Avatar
48 months ago
Just the other day, I was using a friend's Oppo phone.

I tried to help my friend recover some deleted data. Naturally, I went to the Oppo/Android app store to look for "data recovery" apps. My god. What a freaking mess. Every app on there was a scam. None of them did anything except play endless ads and then scan existing data. All the reviews, sometimes 40,000+ reviews were fake.

I get the argument for 3rd party app stores. But the average consumer is going to be duped so easily by low quality app stores and apps.
Score: 51 Votes (Like | Disagree)
yabeweb Avatar
48 months ago

I hope Apple withdraws from states that do this until their technologically inept dinosaur legislators are forced to backpedal due to public backlash. If sideloading were allowed, immediately every garbage company/institution will withdraw from the app store and force you to sideload their app as the only way to get it. It'll be like when Netflix, a single beautiful cable TV replacement, was cut up into 100 individual annoying services because a bunch of companies got greedy.
According to people Apple should only sell inside it's company.

Should stop selling to China because they copy everything, should get out of India market because of work condition ... then there was EU for their warranty policies then there was Russia because they steal data... you understand that if they withdrew from any market they have some issue with it will be the end of Apple.

If Apple did what you suggest it would only lose money.

It's a corporation, not a 2-year-old picking up its ball and leaving going home.
Score: 39 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BootsWalking Avatar
48 months ago
Whatever your opinion on this matter may be, it's clear Apple will be forced to alter its App Store policy in a meaningful way. There are just too many government bodies pushing this for Apple to maintain the status quo. It's only a matter of when not if. Apple must know this too and has decided on a delaying strategy to squeeze out profits from the current structure for as long as possible.
Score: 28 Votes (Like | Disagree)
macar00n Avatar
48 months ago
I hope Apple withdraws from states that do this until their technologically inept dinosaur legislators are forced to backpedal due to public backlash. If sideloading were allowed, immediately every garbage company/institution will withdraw from the app store and force you to sideload their app as the only way to get it. It'll be like when Netflix, a single beautiful cable TV replacement, was cut up into 100 individual annoying services because a bunch of companies got greedy.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
PlayUltimate Avatar
48 months ago
Not a lawyer, but didn't the contract exist prior to Apple having "monopolistic" power. Would a contract that was formed prior to having that type of "control" be now made invalid due to having that "control"? Especially if the terms had not changed to substantially to take advantage of that control. If I recall when the App Store was created (2008), Apple had a 19.2% smart phone market share. Since Apple's growth took place organically without changing the the contract terms, does the changing marketpower require a change in a static contract?
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DelayedGratificationGene Avatar
48 months ago
These politicians are meddling in a product that is secure, private, reliable and cherished by both users and developers. Politicians, please stop wasting taxpayer time and money and focus on more important matters.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)