Brussels (Reuters) – The escalating dispute between Apple and video game developer Epic Games has brought the European Union (EU) into action.
The antitrust authority announced on Wednesday that it had requested information about why the US company was preventing the “Fortnite” maker from setting up its own online marketplace for iPhones and iPads. On this basis, she will decide whether Apple is violating EU law.
By building an alternative app store, Epic wanted to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the Digital Markets Act (DMA). For this purpose, the company set up a user account for software developers at Apple, which was blocked by the US company. The DMA, which came into force on Thursday, subjects technology companies to stricter regulation if they have a certain number of users. Among other things, companies like Apple must open their software ecosystem to competitors.
According to its own statements, the EU is not only investigating a violation of the DMA, but also of the Digital Services Act (DSA) and the Platform to Business Regulation (P2B). The DSA stipulates, among other things, that the blocking or deletion of user accounts must be proportionate. The P2B obliges platforms to inform business customers about changes to the terms and conditions before access is blocked.
Apple justified the blocking of Epic in the EU with previous contract violations. “Epic’s blatant breach of its contractual obligations led the courts to find that Apple has the right to ‘terminate any or all of its wholly owned subsidiaries, affiliates and/or other companies under the control of Epic Games at any time and in Apple’s sole discretion.’ “In light of Epic’s past and current conduct, Apple has exercised this right.”
The two companies have been arguing in court for a long time. The video game developer objects to the fact that its products can currently only be downloaded via Apple’s App Store and purchases can only be made via the iPhone manufacturer’s billing system. For this, he charges up to 30 percent commission.
In the USA, the US Supreme Court dismissed a corresponding lawsuit. In a similar case against Google, Epic won a victory. This court considered the Alphabet subsidiary’s Play Store to be an illegal monopoly. At the time, Google announced an appeal against the decision.
(Report by Foo Yun Chee; written by Hakan Ersen. Edited by Olaf Brenner. If you have any questions, please contact our editorial team at [email protected] (for politics and economics) or [email protected] (for companies and markets).)
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