Epic is challenging Apple and Google to make changes in the App Store and Google Play Store, respectively, but is that all? Here’s what we think.
It didn’t take long after Fortnite tried circumventing the App Store’s 30% cut before Apple yanked the game off its platform, and the Google Play Store too. But now that looks like it all went according to Epic’s plan: the gaming giant immediately filed lawsuits against both Apple and Google decrying their monopolistic practices and started riling up gamers to complain to the App Store owner. So what is Epic’s master plan? Judging by the lawsuit Epic Games filed against Apple, it’s not to reduce the cut taken through the App Store. It’s to shatter Apple’s control over what software is and isn’t permitted on iOS as well as how consumers pay developers for it. Epic submitted a second lawsuit against Google, though without nearly as much fanfare, and with roughly similarly-stated goals: ending alleged monopolistic and anti-competitive practices. in a roundabout way, breaking Apple’s and Google’s control could allow Epic to launch its own app store on iOS and Android – which could possibly be an extension of the PC-based Epic Store on mobile. Which Epic CEO Tim Sweeney actually said he wanted to do back in June. Let’s start with what Epic isn’t asking for, as seen in paragraph 21 of the Apple lawsuit: “Epic is not bringing this case to recover these damages; Epic is not seeking any monetary damages. Instead, Epic seeks to end Apple’s dominance over key technology markets, open up the space for progress and ingenuity, and ensure that Apple mobile devices are open to the same competition as Apple’s personal computers. As such, Epic respectfully requests this Court to enjoin Apple from continuing to impose its anti-competitive restrictions on the iOS ecosystem and ensure 2020 is not like ‚1984‘.” That’s actually the second snide reference to Apple’s famous ‘1984’ Superbowl ad the company made – the first was a spoof video Epic released that replaced the iconic hammer-throwing heroine with a Fortnite character who tossed a unicorn axe (a signature weapon from the game) into a screen dominated by an apple-headed authoritarian: Not very subtle – and neither was Epic’s subsequent call to action getting gamers to complain to Apple on Fortnite’s behalf. There’s even a hashtag. Which is all to say that Epic carefully prepared a campaign of social influence (and legal pressure) to simultaneously attack the App Store’s software hold on iOS devices while also playing the victim to the passionate Fortnite playerbase.
