The United States Supreme Court has refused rule in the case of Apple vs Epic, in a decision that, de facto, means the end of this dispute. The high court has rejected the request of both companies, and ultimately will not issue a verdict in favor of either party, so the ruling in the previous instance will prevail.
De facto, although not completely, it is a half-victory for Apple, since now I will uphold the decision of Judge Yvonne González Rogers, of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which did more than confirm the first instance decision in one of the most notorious trials in recent years.
The final scale of both sentences determined that although Apple had acted in an anti-competitive manner by prohibiting developers from informing users about other payment methods, it obliged the company to allow them include links and other “calls to action” outside the App Store payment system. Something that Apple partially complied with once the Appeals Circuit ratified the sentence.
Epic has hope for Europe in its battle against Apple
Now, with the decision of the Supreme Court not to rule on the matter, the verdict of the Court of Appeals stands, and, therefore, Apple must allow links or informative notes in apps so that users can pay for their subscriptions and purchases in-app outside the channels of the App Store. Nevertheless, will still not be obliged to allow different payment methods to yours within the applications.
The Supreme Court’s decision is more bittersweet in the case of Epic. The judge’s decision and the ratification of the Court of Appeals do not force Apple to comply with Epic’s greatest claim: Allow developers to distribute applications through third-party download stores. Nor to restore Fortnite in the App Store or include alternative payment systems.
However, Epic still has hope from the EU, which has a regulation in place that would force Apple to add third-party stores to its devices, whose entry into force is scheduled for March, although it is not clear that in the end it will be a direct imposition for the apple company.