Apple to Allow Epic Games Store on iOS in Compliance with New EU Rules

Fortnite developer Epic Games has announced that it will be launching a native iOS version of the Epic Games Store and bringing Fortnite back to iOS devices. This decision comes in the wake of Apple’s announcement that it will soon allow sideloading and alternate marketplaces on its devices to comply with new EU rules. Epic’s CEO, Tim Sweeney, has expressed his disapproval of Apple’s revised guidelines, referring to them as “hot garbage”.

Apple revealed significant changes to its App Store guidelines, including the confirmation that it will now allow developers to submit game streaming apps for the first time. The company, however, expressed concerns about the new risks that the Digital Markets Act poses to EU users. It also emphasized the potential threats related to privacy and security that may arise from the new EU-mandated options for processing payments and downloading apps on iOS devices.

According to Apple, users in all 27 EU countries will have the option to download apps from “alternative app marketplaces” starting in March. To ensure platform integrity and protect users, Apple will require all iOS apps, regardless of their distribution source, to be notarized. Additionally, Apple will approve all developers via authorization before they can operate their own stores.

Furthermore, Apple has introduced new business terms that developers must agree to if they want to utilize alternative distribution methods or alternative payment processing as per the EU’s Digital Markets Act. While these terms include a reduced commission on App Store apps and the ability for developers to use an alternate payment service provider within their app or link out to their own website, Apple is also implementing a Core Technology Fee. This fee requires developers to pay €0.50 for each first annual install over a 1m threshold every year on both the App Store and alternative marketplaces.

Tim Sweeney, the CEO of Epic Games, has criticized Apple for its new EU rules, calling them a “devious new instance of Malicious Compliance”. He argues that Apple is essentially forcing developers to choose between App Store exclusivity with potentially illegal store terms or accept a new, also-illegal anticompetitive scheme that includes new fees and taxes. Sweeney has also expressed concern that Epic could face an annual bill upwards of $57 million in Core Technology Fees for its Fortnite game.

Despite his criticism, Sweeney has committed to launching a version of the Epic Games Store on iOS and Android when the EU’s Digital Markets Act comes into effect in March. He aims to position the Epic Games Store as the #1 multi-platform software store with payment competition, 0-12 percent fees, and exclusive games like Fortnite. Since its removal from the App Store in 2020, Fortnite has been available to iOS users only through cloud streaming, but Apple’s new guidelines will allow for its native iOS version to make a comeback. Epic Games has wasted no time in hyping up Fortnite’s imminent return to iOS in the EU, although it remains to be seen whether the company will attempt to circumvent Apple’s guidelines once again.