Apple is gearing up to bring its ongoing legal battle with Epic Games back to the Supreme Court. In a recent filing, the tech giant announced its intention to request a review of another facet of this protracted case concerning App Store fees.
Currently, Apple is also seeking to pause the ruling from the appeals court that restricts its ability to charge for external payment options.
To recap, this legal saga began when Epic Games, the creator of Fortnite, introduced external payment methods within its app in 2020 to circumvent Apple's App Store fees. Although Apple largely triumphed in a 2021 court ruling that determined it was not a monopoly, the judge mandated that Apple must permit developers to link to external payment options.
Following the ruling, Apple appealed to the Supreme Court, which opted not to hear the case, thereby upholding the Ninth Circuit Court's original decision. Consequently, Apple began allowing external payments, albeit charging developers a 27% commission on these transactions--a minor reduction from its standard 30% fee. In contrast, Google recently settled a similar case with Epic Games, reducing its Play Store commission to 20%.
Epic Games contended that Apple's 27% fee was non-compliant with the court's order, arguing that developers were not seeing any savings due to additional payment processing fees. The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California sided with Epic, finding Apple in contempt, a ruling later affirmed by the Ninth Circuit Court.
The appeals court ruled that Apple's 27% fee on external payments effectively undermined the purpose of allowing them, but it did not propose a new fee structure. This matter is now set to return to a lower court for further deliberation. Apple had requested a rehearing on this decision, but that request was denied.
With no further options within the Ninth Circuit, Apple is now poised to escalate its case to the Supreme Court. Should the Supreme Court agree to hear the matter, Apple is expected to challenge the legal standards that led to its contempt ruling, arguing that courts should not impose limits on the fees it can charge for its services. Apple maintains that the 27% fee encompasses not just payment processing but also other services, including hosting, discovery, and developer tools, asserting that it reflects the value of its App Store ecosystem.
However, given the Supreme Court's previous refusal to take up Apple's appeal on a different aspect of the case, there's a possibility it may decline this request as well. The outcome of this legal dispute could significantly influence Apple's revenue from its App Store, especially as consumers increasingly turn to AI technologies for their needs.