North Dakota rejects anti-Apple App Store bill drafted by Epic Games lobbyist
The North Dakota State Senate has voted against a bill that would have forced Apple to allow developers and users to bypass the App Store for app payments and downloads.

Credit: AppleInsider
In a 11-36 vote on Tuesday, North Dakota's lawmakers rejected the legislation that was initially drafted by an Epic Games lobbyist. The lobbyist, Lacee Bjork Anderson, was also paid by the Coalition for App Fairness.
Ahead of the vote, Anderson admitted that the bill may not have the votes to pass. According to the North Dakota Senate floor calendar, the bill was listed as a "do not pass" per committee recommendations.
Even though the bill has failed in North Dakota, the fight over app store rules is far from over. The New York Times reports that lawmakers in Georgia and Arizona are considering nearly identical legislation. A state representative in Massachusetts said he was considering introducing a similar bill, and app store legislation is also being pushed in Wisconsin and Minnesota.
The legislation is just part of a broader fight over control of mobile app ecosystems. Apple and Epic Games, for example, are in the midst of a dispute over a violation of developer guidelines that resulted in "Fortnite" being pulled from the App Store.
The legal fight between Apple and Epic Games will go to trial on May 3, 2021 in a U.S. District Court in California.

Credit: AppleInsider
In a 11-36 vote on Tuesday, North Dakota's lawmakers rejected the legislation that was initially drafted by an Epic Games lobbyist. The lobbyist, Lacee Bjork Anderson, was also paid by the Coalition for App Fairness.
Ahead of the vote, Anderson admitted that the bill may not have the votes to pass. According to the North Dakota Senate floor calendar, the bill was listed as a "do not pass" per committee recommendations.
Even though the bill has failed in North Dakota, the fight over app store rules is far from over. The New York Times reports that lawmakers in Georgia and Arizona are considering nearly identical legislation. A state representative in Massachusetts said he was considering introducing a similar bill, and app store legislation is also being pushed in Wisconsin and Minnesota.
The legislation is just part of a broader fight over control of mobile app ecosystems. Apple and Epic Games, for example, are in the midst of a dispute over a violation of developer guidelines that resulted in "Fortnite" being pulled from the App Store.
The legal fight between Apple and Epic Games will go to trial on May 3, 2021 in a U.S. District Court in California.
Comments
As soon as the first bill passes, years of litigation and court tests will begin.
It's like declaring that all stores are merely showrooms, be damned the store owner's operational expenses.
Sure some stores are just showrooms, but not all stores are showrooms.
This was entirely predictable (and predicted)!
I wonder if someone hired for attitude, not skills?
Sweeney is lucky that he is the CEO of Epic, otherwise he has been fired a long time ago. He is destroying Epic, just because of
Or is it ‘Client Responsibility’?
And by the way, you can install any kayak rack on your car just as you can use any case, sticker, or external doodad with your iPhone. But if you install your own engine control software or software add-on on your Subaru (assuming you can build one or find one that works), Subaru is no longer legally responsible for the safety and operability of your car. Analogy crashes and burns.
No company goes into an action like this blind or without the support of its board.
developers who produce Mac OS applications can sell it anywhere and macbook users can buy it, download it and install it without having to go to the app store on the mac. Yet on IOS, developers are told that they can only reach IOS users if they use the official app store.