Apple files countersuit against Fortnite developer Epic Games, seeking damages

Apple files countersuit against Fortnite developer Epic Games, seeking damages
In its countersuit, Apple called Epic Games “willful, brazen, and unlawful.”

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Epic Games’ Fortnite is that the hottest computer game worldwide.
The Apple vs Epic Games legal battle is getting murkier day by day. The tech giant on Tuesday filed a counter lawsuit against the Fortnite maker, alleging the sport developer violated its contract with Apple and seeking an unspecified amount in damages.

“Although Epic portrays itself as a contemporary corporate Robin Hood , actually it’s a multi-billion dollar enterprise that simply wants to pay nothing for the tremendous value it derives from the App Store,” Apple said during a filing with the District Court for the Northern District of California. “Epic’s lawsuit is nothing quite a basic disagreement over money.” Apple called Epic Games’ movtive “willful, brazen, and unlawful.”

The Cupertino, California-based Apple argues that Epic wants “free access to the Apple-provided tools that uses and—worse yet—it wishes to then charge others for access to Apple’s property and technologies.” The lawsuit clearly notes that Epic Games has earned over $600 million through the App Store.

Apple continued by saying that Epic Games’ real motive is to urge “special treatment” from Apple’s App Store rules. the corporate also said that the Fortnite developer got access to tools, marketing opportunities, software and most significantly , access to Apple customers through the App Store.

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“Epic’s demand for special treatment and cries of ‘retaliation’ can’t be reconciled with its flagrant breach of contract and its own business practices, because it takes in billions by taking commissions on game developers’ sales and charging consumers up to $99.99 for bundles of ‘V-Bucks,” Apple said during a lawsuit.

Apple, Apple vs Epic Games, Epic Games, Apple countersuit, Apple vs Epic legal battle, Fortnite, Epic Games lawsuit against AppleFortnite is one among the foremost popular games on the earth with 350 million players.
The trouble between Apple and Epic Games began on August 13 when the sport developer started using their own payment system within Fortnite, bypassing Apple’s standard 30 per cent fees. In no time, Apple removed Epic Games’popular battle royale game Fortnite from the App Store. In response, Epic Games’ sued the iPhone maker alleging that Apple’s App Store “monopolistic” practises violate antitrust rules. Later, Apple suspended Epic Games’ from accessing the App Store’s development tools.

Apple has said it might allow Fortnite back to the App Store if Epic removed the direct payment feature. But Epic has refused, saying complying with Apple’s request would be “to collude with Apple to take care of their monopoly over in-app payments on iOS.”.

The legal battle between Apple and Epic Games comes at a time when Apple battles antitrust scrutiny by running the App Store. Apple, in its defence, argued that the App Store has given many developers a platform to distribute their apps freely.

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