In a significant dispute regarding the European Union's Digital Markets Act, Epic Games has raised concerns about Apple's recently updated App Store rules. While the European Commission may view these changes as satisfactory, Epic Games, known for its hit title Fortnite, contends that Apple still falls short of the legal requirements set forth by the new regulations.
According to the Irish Independent, a spokesperson for the European Commission stated, “The Commission welcomes Apple’s changes to their business terms, which follow a close dialogue between the Commission and Apple after the Commission issued a non-compliance decision related to Apple’s steering terms as well as preliminary findings related to alternative app distribution, both in April 2025.”
The spokesperson also acknowledged Apple's elimination of its Core Technology Fee but did not mention the newly introduced 5% Core Technology Commission. Additionally, Apple expanded the eligibility criteria for running third-party app stores on iOS, another step deemed positive by the Commission.
Epic Games, however, has expressed its dissent. In a post shared on X, the company stated, “The law makes it clear that Apple must allow developers to offer link outs to the web for purchases 'free of charge’ and has to allow 'effective use’ of competing stores. Apple’s terms deliberately violate the Digital Markets Act. If the Commission accepts the terms and drops their ongoing enforcement actions, the law will become meaningless and consumers and developers will not experience the benefits it was designed to provide.”
Recently, Epic released an iOS version of the Epic Game Store, which is currently available in regions where Apple is mandated to permit third-party stores, including the EU, Japan, and Brazil. Nonetheless, Epic is critical of Apple’s decision to impose either a 10% or 15% commission on payments made on linked web pages, depending on whether a third-party payment processor is involved. Furthermore, the company opposes the newly established 5% Core Technology Commission on third-party app stores.
This challenge is not isolated to Apple alone; Epic has also filed a lawsuit against Google, which has resulted in Google modifying its Play Store fees and the process for installing third-party app stores on Android devices. At this time, the Epic Games Store is accessible on Android as a web download, although future updates may change its availability.
Source 1 | Source 2 | Via
