Epic moves forward with iPhone 'Fortnite' return plans via EU alternative App Store

AppleInsider

Good news for European Union "Fortnite" fans -- Epic Games is planning to relaunch the game on its own iPhone app store.

Pending approvals, the Epic Games Store will open in the near future.

The company has posted a status update on X.com updating its followers. Epic has now submitted both the Epic Games Store and the updated Fortnite app to Apple for its required notarization process.

The company has protested nearly every part of Apple's procedures for setting up alternative app stores and submitting apps thus far. However, it has decided to follow the required rules for now, in hopes of returning its game to iOS users.

Epic was banned from selling its products and services in the Apple App Store, and briefly lost its developer license after deliberately breaking Apple's rules. The company has since had its developer status restored after the European Union passed its Digital Markets Act (DMA) rules.

The DMA and its consequences

The DMA has forced Apple to open up its platforms to third-party developers with minimal restrictions. However, the company has reserved the right to check third-party apps and app stores for adherence to Apple's security and user privacy policies.

This is part of its requirement that apps be "notarized" as valid and compliant before being offered outside of the official Apple App Store.

Epic and other developers like Spotify have complained about the requirements. The EU is currently investigating both Apple's rules around alternative app stores as well as its Core Technology Fee.

Another alternative App Store has complained about the Core Technology Fee.

It has also recently dinged Apple for its anti-steering rules. Apple has already made some changes to the policy in response, but Epic has challenged those rules in court.

For developers selling through other app stores, the Core Technology Fee (CTF) is a royalty paid to Apple after the first million installs of a given app. The fee is currently set at 0.5 Euro (about 54 cents US) per install.

There is an exception to the fee for apps that are offered free of any charge.

In addition, any third-party app store must also pay the Core Technology Fee for each new download. For the alternative stores, there is no exception for the first million units.

This means that Epic's planned app store would owe Apple a half-Euro for each install over the first million. It would then owe Apple another half-Euro for every download from its own app store.

Owners of alternative app stores, such as Riley Testut's AltStore, have complained to the European Union about the fee.

Apple defends it as being a charge for leveraging Apple's technology and notarization services. These services ensure that developers and other app stores sell items that work on Apple's platforms.



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macxpress

I'll laugh if this is a flop on Epic's part and very little take it. I can't wait for them to complain they can't be on the regular App Store again and how it's hurting their business. 

foregoneconclusion

Fortnite already returned to iOS via browser-based game streaming (Xbox Cloud + GeForce NOW + Amazon Luna).

chasm

foregoneconclusion said:

Fortnite already returned to iOS via browser-based game streaming (Xbox Cloud).

Good point, but that's not a native iOS implementation of Fortnite. There would be, I'm pretty sure, a palpable difference there.

phaseangle

Maybe Apple should make an app available in the epic store and sue them for the exorbitant fees.

22july2013

A home for apps that push the boundaries of iOS.

Translation: push the boundaries of your privacy rights and security.

chasm

Hey wasn’t Epic fined for illegally collecting personal information on underage players? ISTR something like that …

michelb76

macxpress said:

I'll laugh if this is a flop on Epic's part and very little take it. I can't wait for them to complain they can't be on the regular App Store again and how it's hurting their business. 

This is obviously a ploy by Epic to expose how shitty apple's third party stores will be. I expect many more court cases.

aderutter

michelb76 
apple's third party stores

No such thing as Apple’s third party stores, third party stores are third party, perhaps you meant how shitty “third party stores” are compared to Apple’s app store(s). 

jimh2

Make $0 and not participate in an App Store or pay a 1/2 Euro and the money starts rolling in. They are leaving too much money on the table to not buy in and you really look beyond greedy when you see their revenue and the pittance given to Apple for using their software.

hammeroftruth

jimh2 said:

Make $0 and not participate in an App Store or pay a 1/2 Euro and the money starts rolling in. They are leaving too much money on the table to not buy in and you really look beyond greedy when you see their revenue and the pittance given to Apple for using their software.

It’s not considered at all. They think if they bought the development hardware and software that whatever they make should be free for them to put on a server and be allowed to be installed on someone’s iOS device because that’s how it worked on Mac. 

There wasn’t any consideration of how Apple had to go through a considerable amount of time and money to recover the Mac line and how Steve Jobs created the iOS store to make sure outside companies do no circumvent Apple and get money while Apple gets nothing.  

Now I agree that there should be restructuring of fees and that should be an ongoing discussion and have FAIR mediation, but the way the EU has laid things out has in my opinion have “bullies” taking on a bigger bully and in the end the consumer will lose again if the EU thinks this is the extent companies like Epic and Spotify will go. 

VictorMortimer

aderutter said:

michelb76 
apple's third party stores

No such thing as Apple’s third party stores, third party stores are third party, perhaps you meant how shitty “third party stores” are compared to Apple’s app store(s). 

That WOULD be true if Apple was allowing normal software installation.

But Apple is (illegally) charging a fee for app downloads in 3rd party stores, and (illegally) insisting on "notarizing" apps that users would otherwise be able to install normally.

I'm looking forward to the MASSIVE fines for Apple's bad behavior.

commentzilla

Sounds anti-competitive to only offer their game bundled into their store! Why should other store be denied the option to also sell the game?

greginprague

VictorMortimer said:

aderutter said:

michelb76 
apple's third party stores

No such thing as Apple’s third party stores, third party stores are third party, perhaps you meant how shitty “third party stores” are compared to Apple’s app store(s). 

That WOULD be true if Apple was allowing normal software installation.

But Apple is (illegally) charging a fee for app downloads in 3rd party stores, and (illegally) insisting on "notarizing" apps that users would otherwise be able to install normally.

I'm looking forward to the MASSIVE fines for Apple's bad behavior.

Why shouldn’t Apple have the right to protect owners of its equipment from documented bad actors like Epic by vetting their 3rd party App Store?  Beyond that why do you think that should be illegal?

Why should Epic gain access to Apple’s systems and technology for free?  Why should it be illegal to charge Epic for all of the ongoing Apple paid expenses for creating the iPhone’s systems and support infrastructure?

williamlondon

greginprague said:

VictorMortimer said:

aderutter said:

michelb76 
apple's third party stores

No such thing as Apple’s third party stores, third party stores are third party, perhaps you meant how shitty “third party stores” are compared to Apple’s app store(s). 

That WOULD be true if Apple was allowing normal software installation.

But Apple is (illegally) charging a fee for app downloads in 3rd party stores, and (illegally) insisting on "notarizing" apps that users would otherwise be able to install normally.

I'm looking forward to the MASSIVE fines for Apple's bad behavior.

Why shouldn’t Apple have the right to protect owners of its equipment from documented bad actors like Epic by vetting their 3rd party App Store?  Beyond that why do you think that should be illegal?

Why should Epic gain access to Apple’s systems and technology for free?  Why should it be illegal to charge Epic for all of the ongoing Apple paid expenses for creating the iPhone’s systems and support infrastructure?

You're arguing with a troll, fairly new to this forum, but a troll nonetheless, better suited for MacRumors.

exceptionhandler

That WOULD be true if Apple was allowing normal software installation.

But Apple is (illegally) charging a fee for app downloads in 3rd party stores, and (illegally) insisting on "notarizing" apps that users would otherwise be able to install normally.

I'm looking forward to the MASSIVE fines for Apple's bad behavior.

It’s not illegal, yet, per the DMA.  But it’s coming.  Now whether it’s right or not, is a different story.  If the Core Technology fee is removed, I’d expect to see things that were free before may no longer be free in countries that are under the DMA, such as Xcode, compilers, apis, OS features, etc. There is no such thing as a free lunch.