Apple pushes to delay court ruling forcing its hand on app store payments
Apple is calling for a US judge to pause an order which would change app store rules as it appeals the latest judgement in an ongoing antitrust case.
The Tech giant has been embroiled in a globe-spanning set of legal disputes with Epic Games, the creators of Fortnite, after it kicked the company off the app store for violating payment rules which let Apple take a 15 to 30 per cent cut of sales.
In a court filing issued yesterday Apple said it intends to appeal a September ruling which served the company with an injunction, scheduled to go into effect in December, allowing app developers to circumvent app store payment infrastructure which could cost the company billions of dollars.
“At a high level, it is my judgment that, without thoughtful restrictions in place to protect consumers, developers, and the iOS platform, this change will harm users, developers, and the iOS platform more generally,” an Apple spokesperson said in Friday’s court filing.
On September 10 federal judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled in favour of Apple for nine out of ten counts in its anti trust battle with Epic Games. Apple previously called the decision a “huge win,” but has since argued that the app store’s payment infrastructure helps to prevent scams and keeps customers safe.
A hearing on Apple’s delay request has been set for November, but the company has said it wants the proceedings to go ahead earlier. If Judge Rogers refuses to grant their request, Apple could go to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals according to Bloomberg.
Read more: Fortnite calls on Apple to allow its developers back on app store