“Fortnite” returns to iPhone and Android in the EU after antitrust dispute

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FortniteThe mobile app is returning to iPhones in Europe and Android devices worldwide, four years after it was removed from Apple and Google's app stores amid a high-profile antitrust dispute.

The return of one of the world's most popular video games to the two dominant mobile platforms, coinciding with the launch of developer Epic Games' own mobile app store, shows how EU regulation is starting to impact the giants of big tech companies.

Epic CEO Tim Sweeney acknowledged the EU's Digital Markets Act, which forces digital gatekeepers to open their platforms to competitors, and said “the tide is turning” as both Apple and Google come under pressure from regulators and courts around the world.

Fortnite and other titles from Epic Games Fall Guys And Rocket League dig will be released for iOS in Europe and for Android worldwide and will be available through the new Epic Games Store as well as other alternative app stores such as Aptoide and AltStore that launched after the introduction of the DMA in the EU.

“We want to help every store reach users who offer developers great terms,” ​​Sweeney said. “We will offer them all our games and try to create a spirit that helps all developers and recognizes that a rising tide lifts all boats.”

Seven years after its introduction Fortnite remains incredibly popular with gamers. Data from Ampere Analysis, a research group, shows that 35 million people played Fortnite for more than 600 million hours in July on Xbox and PlayStation, making the free-to-play title “by far the most successful game on these consoles in terms of player activity,” according to analyst Piers Harding-Rolls.

Apple and Google removed Epic's games from the App Store and Play Store in August 2020 when the North Carolina-based developer sued them in the US for alleged monopolistic practices. The expulsion was triggered when Epic intentionally bypassed the platforms' mandatory in-app billing systems in protest against their fees for digital purchases. Fortnite and other Epic titles remain banned from Apple's App Store and Google's Play Store worldwide.

The EU's Digital Markets Act forces digital gatekeepers to change their business practices. This includes provisions aimed at opening up mobile operating systems to competing app stores and other distribution and payment methods. The companies had to comply with the new rules by March.

The EU is currently examining whether Apple and Google's App Store compliance plans meet the requirements of the new rules. Failure to comply could result in fines of up to 10 percent of global turnover.

Critics such as Spotify have particularly criticized Apple for a new EU fee structure that aims to capture spending on in-app purchases outside the App Store. They say the system will discourage developers from seeking alternative distribution channels.

Epic said Apple and Google's current rules in the EU meant a “lengthy” process to install the Epic Games Store on iOS and Android. The companies had “intentionally introduced inferior installation experiences laden with multiple steps, confusing device settings, and scare screens,” Epic argued.

In March, Apple briefly suspended Epic's App Store developer account, but then reversed course as the EU investigated the move. “The European Commission has intervened several times to stop Apple from maliciously attempting to prevent us from competing with them,” Sweeney said. “Apple has been terribly obstructive to us.”

In the US, Epic is still fighting with Apple over whether the iPhone maker will comply with a preliminary injunction issued by a California judge that prohibits developers from getting customers to make digital payments outside of their apps. Epic lost the main part of its case against Apple, but won on one point of California law.

In December, however, Google won a major victory when it convinced a jury in California that the company had stifled competition in the Android app market. Google has said it will appeal and is awaiting the judge's decision in the case on sanctions. On Wednesday, the judge said he would issue his order in the coming weeks.