Epic Games wins partial victory in Australian court against Google and Apple

Epic Games, the creator of the popular online game Fortnite, secured a partial win Tuesday in its legal battle against Google and Apple in Australia over alleged anti-competitive practices in their app stores.

The case, led by Epic’s U.S. billionaire CEO Tim Sweeney, accused the tech giants of abusing their market dominance to stifle competition and impose restrictive trade practices.

Federal Court Justice Jonathan Beach upheld key parts of Epic’s claims, finding that Google and Apple’s control of the app market substantially reduced competition and breached Australian competition laws. However, he rejected some of Epic’s allegations, including claims of unconscionable conduct under Australian law.

The ruling follows litigation launched in August 2020 after both companies removed Fortnite from their app stores when Epic introduced a direct payment system, bypassing their platforms’ billing systems. Beach found that both Google and Apple pressured app developers, including Epic, through contracts and technology to sell exclusively via their app stores.

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Epic hailed the decision, saying it would allow its Epic Games Store and Fortnite to launch on Apple’s iOS in Australia. “An Australian court just found that Apple and Google abuse their control over app distribution and in-app payments to limit competition,” the company said, calling it a “win for developers and consumers.”

Apple welcomed the court’s dismissal of some claims but said it “strongly disagrees” with other findings. Google also disagreed with aspects of the ruling, saying it would review the decision. Both companies could appeal to the Federal Court’s full bench.

Justice Beach has yet to release his full judgments — 952 pages on Apple and 914 pages on Google — but delivered a 90-minute oral summary of his findings. A separate hearing will be scheduled to determine potential damages owed to Epic.