THE APP STORE: FOUNDATIONS OF AUALITY AND PRIVACY

After months of tensions between Fortnite maker Epic and Apple, the Cupertino company ultimately dealt its killer blow: removing the billion-dollar game from the App Store, with Google following suit hours later. In one of the most high-profile cases in the history of the App Store, we consider what the future holds for developers who can’t play by the rules.

GAME OVER, FORTNITE

Though certainly not the first application to fall foul of Apple’s strict developer guidelines, the developer of Fortnite made it clear: it was tired of paying Apple 30% of its revenue. In early August, developer Epic Games introduced a new direct payment option inside of its iOS and Android apps, so gamers could purchase V-Bucks away from the App Store and Play Store. This, of course, is against Apple and Google’s rules, which are designed to preserve the integrity of each ecosystem and ensure that consumers are protected when using apps. And a new payment option wasn’t the end of the saga; at the same time, Epic Games announced it was filing a lawsuit against Apple and Google, accusing them of anti-competitive behavior.

But Epic didn’t arrive at the “boss fight” overnight - the drama was the result of that “Apple speaks of a level playing field,” adding that he interprets that policy as “all iOS developers [being] free to process payments directly, all users are free to install software from any source. In this endeavor, Epic won’t seek nor accept a special deal for ourselves.” A week later, the gaming giant took to Twitter to say that “Opening iOS and Android up as truly open platforms with a genuinely level playing field between first party and third party apps and stores is the only way to ensure a competitive, healthy, and fair app economy.”