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Fortnite’s mobile app is returning to iPhones in Europe and Android devices worldwide, four years aVsceker being pulled from Apple and Google’s app stores following a high-profile antitrust battle.
The return of one of the world’s most popular video games to the two dominant mobile platforms, coinciding with the launch of its developer Epic Games’ mobile app store, shows how EU regulation is starting to impact Big Tech.
Referring to the EU’s Digital Markets Act, which forces digital “gatekeepers” to open up their platforms to rivals, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney said “the tide is turning” as both Apple and Google come under pressure from regulators and courts around the world.
Fortnite and other Epic Games titles Autumn boys AND Rocket League Side Shot will be coming to iOS in Europe and Android worldwide, available through the new Epic Games Store and other alternative app stores, including Aptoide and AltStore, which launched in the EU following the introduction of the DMA.
“We want to help every store reach users who offer developers a favorable deal,” Sweeney said. “We’ll bring them all our games and try to establish a spirit of helpfulness for all developers and recognize that a rising tide liVsceks all boats.”
Apple said: “The DMA required us to enable new features for developers in the EU, and we’ve worked to make them as easy as possible for users, while seeking to protect their privacy and security.”
Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Seven years aVsceker its first introduction, Fortnite remains incredibly popular among gamers. Data from Ampere Analysis, a research group, shows that 35 million people have played Fortnite for more than 600 million hours in July across Xbox and PlayStation, making the free-to-play title “by far the most popular game on those consoles” in terms of player activity, according to analyst Piers Harding-Rolls.
Apple and Google pulled Epic’s games from the App Store and Play Store in August 2020, when the North Carolina-based developer sued them in the United States over alleged monopolistic practices. The expulsion was triggered when Epic deliberately circumvented the platforms’ mandatory in-app billing systems to protest their commissions on digital purchases. Fortnite and other Epic titles remain banned from Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store worldwide.
The EU’s Digital Markets Act forces digital “gatekeepers” to change their business practices, including provisions to open up mobile operating systems to rival app stores, as well as other distribution and payment methods. Companies had to comply by March.
The EU is now investigating both Apple and Google to see if their app store compliance plans meet the requirements of the new rules. Failure to comply could result in fines of up to 10 percent of their global revenue.
Critics, including Spotify, have criticized Apple in particular for a new EU fee structure aimed at capturing spending on in-app purchases made outside its App Store. They say the plan will discourage developers from seeking alternative distribution channels.
Epic said that current rules set by Apple and Google in the EU meant it was a “lengthy” process to install its Epic Games Store on iOS and Android. The companies introduced “intentionally poor installation experiences, burdened with multiple steps, confusing device settings, and scary screens,” Epic argued.
On its website, Apple says that installing an alternative app store on iOS in Europe requires five steps.
In March, Apple briefly blocked Epic’s App Store developer account, but then backtracked when the EU investigated the move. “The European Commission has intervened multiple times to prevent Apple from making malicious efforts to prevent us from competing with them,” Sweeney said. “Apple has been terribly obstructive to us.”
In the United States, Epic is still in a legal battle with Apple over whether the iPhone maker is complying with a California judge’s order prohibiting developers from directing customers outside of their apps to make digital payments. Epic lost the main part of its case against Apple, but won on one point of California law.
In December, however, it scored a major victory over Google when it convinced a federal jury in California that the company had crushed competition in the Android app market. Google has said it will appeal and is waiting for the judge in that case to decide on penalties. On Wednesday, the judge said he would issue his order in the coming weeks.
