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Epic Games: Apple demands damages for breach of contract

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Apple has turned the table on Epic Games, creator of Fortnite, as it filed counterclaims in which the gaming company was alleged of breaching its contract with Apple.

Filing the response in the District Court for the Northern District of California on Tuesday September 8, 2020, Apple said that Epic lawsuit was a mere disagreement over money.  

“Although Epic portrays itself as a modern corporate Robin Hood, in reality it is a multi-billion dollar enterprise that simply wants to pay nothing for the tremendous value it derives from the App Store.”

Apple in its filing requested that Epic Games make restitution for breach of contract and for all the Fortnite money it has collected through its payment system.

Apple further claimed in the filing that about $600 million has so far been earned by Epic through the Apple Store. 

Apple also demanded that its external payment mechanism for all apps including Fortnite be banned through a permanent injunction it expected to be granted by the court.

Speaking about the act which it found rather shocking, Apple in a statement said, "Unbeknownst to Apple, Epic had been busy enlisting a legion of lawyers, publicists, and technicians to orchestrate a sneak assault on the App Store.

"Shortly after 2:00 a.m. on August 13, 2020, the morning on which Epic would activate its hidden commission-theft functionality, Mr. Sweeney again emailed Apple executives, declaring that ‘Epic will no longer adhere to Apple’s payment processing restrictions.”

Meanwhile, mid August, Epic Games sued Apple for removing a version of Fortnite it published on Apple App Store on 13th of August, including a payment method through which users could pay for the game content. 

Apple has removed the version of the game because Epic Games had refused to remit Apple’s 30% share. 

Afterwards, on August 28, Apple further prevented the company from creating or updating new Apps including Fortnite on its platform as it suspended the company’s developer account.

However, Epic Games has maintained that Apple is only making attempt to suppress free market competition. It has also requested that a preliminary injunction be given for Apple to restore Fortnite in its App Store and reactivate its developer account.

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