The tech and gaming industry is currently shocked at the turn of events that many thinks was a simple issue. Epic Games, the team behind the successful battle royale title "Fortnite," is taking legal action against tech giants Google and Apple. The gaming studio's decision came shortly after "Fortnite" was removed from the Google Play app store and Apple Store.
Apple and Google Made A Decision
Tech giants Apple and Google earlier decided to remove the hit title "Fortnite" on their respective app stores. The decision came following Epic Games' recent move that allegedly bypassed their payment systems to avoid giving them a cut of the game's sales. Both platforms charge Epic Games 30% of purchases on their app stores.
"Fortnite" is available on Android phones and app stores, aside from Google Play. The search engine giant earlier said that it runs an open system and would work to bring the title back to its official app platform. In other words, even if the game is no longer available in the Play Store, players could still install "Fortnite" from Epic Games' own launcher and on the Samsung Galaxy app store.
Unlike Google, Apple is more restrictive, and on Thursday, the Cupertino-based tech titan decided to remove "Fortnite" from Apple App Store. The company's decision left players with no other way to install their favorite battle royale game. But what made these tech giants come up with such a decision?
The latest update of "Fortnite" provided all players with a 20% discount on its in-game currency called V-Bucks. However, this discount is only available if they pay directly to Epic Games instead of using the payment systems of Apple or Google. Since both stores have their set of rules, Epic games' latest offer broke those rules.
Epic Games Retaliates
Epic Games could be well aware of the consequences of its recent action and following Apple's decision, it released a video mocking the Cupertino tech giant. On its official twitter account, Epic Games published the company's famous 1984-themed TV ad. Aside from that, the gaming studio published court documents almost immediately, according to BBC.
Epic Games has defied the App Store Monopoly. In retaliation, Apple is blocking Fortnite from a billion devices. Visit https://t.co/K3S07w5uEk and join the fight to stop 2020 from becoming "1984" https://t.co/tpsiCW4gqK — Fortnite (@FortniteGame) August 13, 2020
Interestingly, while Epic Games made a publicity blitz against Apple, it was seemingly quiet against Google. However, the gaming studio filed a lawsuit against Google and Apple. Epic called Apple the behemoth seeking to control markets, stifle innovation, and block competition. The gaming studio described Google as utilizing its size to do evil to innovators, competitors, and consumers in various markets that it has monopolized.
