Video game giant Epic Games’ landmark suit against Apple Inc has been dragged Down Under, with the company now suing the iPhone maker in the Federal Court of Australia.
In Australia, Epic Games – the maker of Fortnite – is suing Apple over its control over apps in the iPhone and iPad app stores.
As it stands, app developers can only use Apple’s in-house payment processing service which sees the tech giant receive a 30 per cent cut of all in-app purchases.
Epic attempted to circumvent this rule in its popular game Fortnite by coding it so users could buy directly from them instead of Apple at a discount.
Apple quickly banned Fortnite from the App Store and Epic launched the suit in retaliation.
The Australian lawsuit alleges Apple’s app store policies breaches the Competition and Consumer Act (CCA) and Australian Consumer Law.
Epic alleges Apple “illegally forces” it and other app developers to only use the App Store to distribute software applications and to only use Apple’s payment system for purchases.
Epic CEO and founder Tim Sweeney told the AFR his company was not suing Apple for monetary damages but was seeking a ruling to benefit all independent software makers in the future.
He hopes Apple users will be allowed to install third-party app stores on iPhones and iPads in the same way Android users can.
“Apple’s rules would not have allowed the internet to be invented and developed if it had come after the App Store,” Sweeney said.
Sweeney said he was forced to sue Apple in an Australian court after the company argued any findings in the US case would only apply to business practices in the US.
The Australian lawsuit may be one of many cases outside the US.
In response to the filing in Oz, Apple told the AFR: “”Their reckless behaviour made pawns of customers, and we look forward to making this clear to Australian courts.”
