Epic Games tweets that Apple removed Fortnite from the App Store and has informed Epic that on Friday, Aug. 28 Apple will terminate all its developer accounts and cut Epic off from iOS and Mac development tools.
The Fortnite maker is asking the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of California “to stop this retaliation.” You can read the company’s legal motion here, but here’s a key paragraph: This motion is made on the grounds that (1) absent a temporary restraining order granted without further notice, Epic is likely to suffer irreparable harm; (2) that Epic is likely to succeed on the merits of its claims that Apple’s conduct violates the Sherman Act; (3) that the balance of equities tips sharply in Epic’s favor; and (4) that the public interest supports an injunction.
On Aug. 13, Epic Games announced that it had introduced a new direct payment option in the Fortnite app for iPhone and iPad, allowing players to purchase 1000 V-Bucks for US$7.99 rather than $9.99 through Apple’s in-app purchase mechanism. Shortly thereafter, Apple removed the gamer from the App Store. Epic immediately filed a lawsuit against Apple in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
