Epic Games Plans to Relaunch "Fortnite" on its Own iPhone App Store in the EU
Good news for European Union "Fortnite" fans — Epic Games is planning to relaunch the game on its own iPhone app store. The company has posted a status update on X.com, informing its followers that it has now submitted both the Epic Games Store and the updated Fortnite app to Apple for its required notarization process.
Compliance with Apple's Procedures
Epic has protested nearly every part of Apple's procedures for setting up alternative app stores and submitting apps. However, it has decided to follow the required rules for now, in hopes of returning its game to iOS users.
Epic was banned from selling its products and services in the Apple App Store and briefly lost its developer license after deliberately breaking Apple's rules. The company has since had its developer status restored after the European Union passed its Digital Markets Act (DMA) rules.
The Digital Markets Act (DMA) and Its Consequences
The DMA has forced Apple to open up its platforms to third-party developers with minimal restrictions. However, Apple has reserved the right to check third-party apps and app stores for adherence to its security and user privacy policies. This is part of its requirement that apps be "notarized" as valid and compliant before being offered outside of the official Apple App Store.
Epic and other developers like Spotify have complained about these requirements. The EU is currently investigating both Apple's rules around alternative app stores as well as its Core Technology Fee (CTF).
The Core Technology Fee (CTF)
For developers selling through other app stores, the CTF is a royalty paid to Apple after the first million installs of a given app. The fee is currently set at 0.5 Euro (about 54 cents US) per install. There is an exception to the fee for apps that are offered free of any charge.
In addition, any third-party app store must also pay the CTF for each new download. For these alternative stores, there is no exception for the first million units. This means that Epic's planned app store would owe Apple a half-Euro for each install over the first million and another half-Euro for every download from its own app store.
Complaints and Apple's Defense
Owners of alternative app stores, such as Riley Testut's AltStore, have complained to the European Union about the fee. Apple defends it as a charge for leveraging Apple's technology and notarization services, which ensure that developers and other app stores sell items that work on Apple's platforms.
