Epic asks judge to make Apple let Fortnite back on the US App Store

Epic CEO Tim Sweeney. | Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge

Epic is asking District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers to bid Apple to reappraisal — and o.k. if compliant with Apple’s guidelines — Epic’s submission of Fortnite to the US App Store successful a new tribunal filing. The institution argues successful the papers that Apple is erstwhile again successful contempt of the judge’s April order restricting it from rejecting apps implicit their usage of extracurricular outgo links.

In a letter from Apple that Epic shared precocious Friday, Apple writes that it won’t “take enactment connected the Fortnite app submission until aft the Ninth Circuit rules connected our pending petition for a partial enactment of the caller injunction.” Epic claims the hold is retaliation for its ineligible combat with the company, and notes successful its filing that Apple “expressly and repeatedly” told it and the tribunal that it would o.k. Fortnite if the app complied with Apple’s guidelines, which it insists its existent submission does.

Following Gonzalez Rogers’ determination successful April, Epic said Fortnite would return to the US App Store. The institution has since submitted the crippled twice, most recently to see contented from an update to the EU mentation of the game. But alternatively of Apple approving Fortnite in the US, the crippled disappeared from the EU App Store.

Epic claimed that was due to the fact that it can’t merchandise successful the EU due to the fact that of Apple’s determination to artifact its US submission. Apple said it had simply asked that it resubmit the app without including the US storefront, “so arsenic not to interaction Fortnite successful different geographies.” But successful a post announcing its caller filing, Epic claims that would mean it has to taxable aggregate versions of the app, which it says is against Apple’s guidelines.

Epic is asking that the tribunal enforce its injunction, find Apple successful contempt again, and necessitate the institution to “accept immoderate compliant Epic app, including Fortnite, for organisation connected the U.S. storefront of the App Store.”

The hitch present is that passim this case, Judge Gonzalez Rogers hasn’t gone truthful acold arsenic to necessitate Fortnite’s instrumentality to the store, uncovering successful her 2021 ruling that Epic had inactive knowingly breached its developer agreement with apple. 9to5Mac writes that the justice would apt request to hold that Apple is erstwhile again successful contempt of court, arsenic she did successful her April 30th ruling. The quality betwixt present and past — and what could enactment successful Epic’s favour — is conscionable how annoyed she seemed with Apple successful the substance of that ruling.

Apple did not instantly respond to The Verge’s petition for comment.