Epic Games has announced today that Apple has terminated its developer account just a couple of weeks until it was enabled.
The account, held by Epic's Swedish subsidiary Epic Games Sweden, was intended to launch the Epic Games Store on iOS in Europe, marking the return of the ultra-popular battle royale game Fortnite to Apple's platform.
It was secured following the launch of the Digital Markets Act by the European union, wich has the goal to ensure that large "gatekeeping" platforms act within the confines of fair competition, albeit its effectiveness remains in question.
Today's news, shared by Epic in an official news post, means that Epic's plans for Fortnite on iOS won't go forward, at least for now.
According to Epic Games' version of the events, the company requested parley within Apple’s DMA consultations, but was denied. Apple then requested Epic to promise that it would comply with the terms of the developer agreements.
CEO Tim Sweeney himself provided said promise and offered to give "any specific further assurances on the topic that Apple would like".
This was followed by a letter to Epic by one of Apple's lawyers, announcing that the developer account was terminated and complaining that Sweeney's response was "wholly insufficient and not credible."
The letter takes issue with Sweeney's ongoing criticism of Apple's policies, defined as a "litany of public attacks," including the following example on X (formerly Twitter).
Many folks on here think of me as an Apple hater. Nothing could be further from the truth. There is no other group of designers and engineers on earth who can build as great products as Apple when they are directed towards that end. The woes begin when they are directed not to.
Apple leadership faces some massive decisions in the coming weeks as the contradictions between their stated principles and the intended and actual consequences of their present policies are reckoned with: the app store monopoly, the digital goods payments monopoly, the tax, the suppression of true information about competing purchasing options, the blocking of competing web browser engines and outright destruction of web apps.
It doesn’t have to be this way. Apple is a few bold and visionary decisions away from being the company they once were and that they still advertise themselves to be: beloved brand to consumers, partner to developers, and overlord to none.
Sweeney has been a vocal critic of Apple's alleged attempts to curtail fair competition on iOS platforms, and recently of the iPhone manufacturer's behavior, which he believes is in breach with the spirit if not with the letter of the Digital Markets Act.
Epic Games defined the termination of its account as a "serious violation of the DMA" showing that "Apple has no intention of allowing true competition on iOS devices."
This follows a protracted legal battle between Epic and Apple, while the developer of the Unreal Engine and Fortnite recently had more luck in its fight against Google.
