Tech giant Apple recently confirms that it is working to terminate the account of notable game developer Epic Games.
Aside from the ban on these developer accounts, Apple is also planning to cut off access to its development tools. The decision stems from an ongoing legal battle between the two companies. They have a disagreement with regards to revenue share and certain platform rules.
Response from Epic Games
Epic Games confirms this news through a Twitter post. The game developer also said that it is filing a motion to restrain the decision by Apple. The Cupertino-based tech giant is planning to sever Epic Games access to its tolls on August 28.
Epic Games said that the decision would inflict “irreparable harm” to the overall operation of the company. Moreover, it will cut off the developer’s access to various tools and resources.
Epic Games has filed legal papers in response to Apple, read more here: https://t.co/c4sgvxQUvb
— Fortnite (@FortniteGame) August 13, 2020
One of the biggest issues is the termination of its access to the Unreal Engine. This will put all future development to a complete halt. With no access to updates and future upgrades, the game developer will be forced to use other game engines.
Epic Games is also looking to prevent Apple from removing its flagship game Fortnite on the App Store. The iPhone-manufacturer has already planned to do this last week.
A bigger issue with Epic Games
The issue started when Epic Games started to implement its payment option for Fortnite. This means that players can essentially bypass the App Store and Google Play Store for their payments.
This new transaction model bypasses the payment methods of both the App Store and Play Store. It is important to note that both online stores take a cut of all transactions on their platform. Epic Games is also cutting the middle-man by giving out discounts on its digital store to attract players.
Following the implementation of this new transaction model, Apple removed Fortnite from the App Store. Google quickly followed suit and removed the game on its platform.
As a response, Epic Games filed lawsuits against Google and Apple over these issues. The game developer accuses the tech giants of unfair business practices.
In response to the lawsuit, Apple said in a statement:
“The problem Epic has created for itself is one that can easily be remedied if they submit an update of their app that reverts it to comply with the guidelines they agreed to and which apply to all developers.”
Apple reiterates that its App Store is secure and provides an equal platform to all of its developers.
Featured image courtesy of ilikeyellow/Shutterstock