The U.S. Court of Appeals will now hear from Apple and Epic Games on October 21. Both companies are appealing certain aspects of the antitrust ruling from their previous App Store lawsuit.
Apple mostly won its case against “Fortnite” developer Epic, the Cupertino company objects to the “anti-steering” aspects of the decision. Apple says that Epic didn’t produce enough evidence to prove the ruling, and as such, that aspect should be tossed.
Meanwhile, Epic Games has argued in its appeal that Judge Gonzalez Roberts had “erred” in her judgment. The Epic Games document measures in at around 135 pages and details Epic’s arguments as to why it lost nine of ten counts.
Epic in August 2020 implemented a direct payment feature in the iOS version of “Fortnite” in violation of Apple’s App Store policies. Apple subsequently removed the game, and Epic Games filed a lawsuit.
Epic Games had argued that it’s been denied access to iOS, which it claims is an “essential facility” due to the fact it’s been blocked access to the App Store. Apple is specifically accused of violating Section 2 of the Sherman Act through “its unlawful denial to Epic and other app distributors of an essential facility—access to iOS.”
In September 2021, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that Apple was not a monopoly. However, Apple would be forced to change its “anti-steering” rules that prohibit developers from directly communicating with customers about alternate payment options.
As noted by FOSS Patents, the hearing of the appeals will be held on Friday, October 21, 2022. It will be heard in Courtroom 3 of the James R. Browning U.S. Courthouse in San Francisco.
