Epic Games’ popular Battle Royale Fortnite has finally returned to the iOS APP Store in the United States and the dedicated mobile Epic Games Store in Europe, despite Apple’s trying to drag its feet.
The announcement was made by Epic Games on X (formerly Twitter), with the promise that the app will show up in search shortly, writing a brand-new and climactic chapter in the legal battle between the developer and Apple, which has been going on since 2020.
At the end of April, Judge Yvonne Gonzales Rogers of the Northern District of California found Apple in Contempt of Court as it continued to try to block apps offering alternative payment methods on the App Store, marking a humiliating legal defeat for the manufacturer of the iPhone and iPad.
While Epic Games immediately announced the return of Fortnite to iOS as a result, and promptly submitted the app to Apple’s review team, the corporation from Cupertino decided to deny its approval in a rather desperate attempt to stall for time as it hoped for the Court of Appeals to rule in its favor and grant a partial stay of Judge Gonzales’ order.
This also caused the removal of Fortnite from the European Epic Games Store on iOS, and prompted Epic to plead with the judge for a further order to force Apple to unlock the game’s return to the App Store.
Yesterday, Judge Gonzales issued an order demanding that Apple explain the legal authority upon which it contended that it could ignore her orders, pretty clearly signaling that her patience was running thin.
The order mentioned that Apple is “fully capable of resolving this issue without further briefing or a hearing,” however, if the court was forced to intervene, the Apple official who is personally responsible for ensuring compliance would have to appear to a hearing on May 27, and be “fully prepared to answer any questions on the topic.”
Apparently, this latest “hammer slam” had the desired effect and managed to convey to Apple the message that it was quickly running out of excuses, resulting in the rather swift approval of Fortnite’s return to the iOS platform.
At the moment, we don’t know whether this will end the ferocious legal battle between Epic Games and Apple, which has been going on for the better part of five years, as appeals are still pending.
Yet, at the very least, a big gate protecting Apple’s ultra-profitable walled garden has been battered down, and both American and European gamers can enjoy Fortnite on their iPhones and iPads.