The US Court of Appeals has denied Apple’s request to pause a court order mandating changes to its App Store policies.
The company failed to persuade the court to discontinue key parts of a federal judge’s order requiring the iPhone maker to immediately open its lucrative App Store to more competition.
This court decision stems from the ongoing antitrust litigation initiated by Epic Games, the creator of Fortnite, challenging the phone company’s control over in-app payment systems.
A three-judge appeals panel denied the phone maker’s appeal to stop an April 30 order prohibiting the company from levying a fee on in-app iPhone transactions processed outside its once-exclusive payment system. This decision was issued in a two-page decision issued late Thursday.
The setback risks diverting billions of dollars in revenue from the tech firm while it overturns the order to rein in its commissions from e-commerce within apps on the iPhone.
Apple vows to continue to battle Judge Yvonne Gonzalez-Rogers’ ruling
Apple had sought to pause the app store order after it was handed down by the US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez-Rogers.
In a stinging rebuke, the judge found the Cupertino, California, company in civil contempt of court and recommended an independent investigation to determine whether a high-ranking executive lied while testifying at the tech giant’s trial in her Oakland, California, courtroom.
This represented another turn of the screw in a legal fight that video game developer Epic Games started nearly five years ago when it began accusing Apple of turning the iPhone’s app store into a price-gouging monopoly.
The phone company vowed to continue to battle that decision in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. However, in the meantime, Gonzalez-Rogers’s order restraining Apple’s commissions on some in-app commerce will stand while possibly affecting its profits.
Tim Sweeney refers to Apple’s fee on in-app iPhone transactions as “the long national nightmare”
Following the appeals court rejection of Apple’s request, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney shared an X post claiming that the long national nightmare of the tech firm’s tax is over. He hoped next week’s WWDC would be the Apple-led celebration of freedom developers and users have long deserved.
In response, the tech firm expressed disappointment with the court’s denying its request to stay. The company then promised to continue its appeal despite failing this time. The firm claimed it intends to ensure the app store stays an amazing opportunity for developers and a safe and trusted place for our users.
It is worth noting that while Gonzalez-Rogers largely sided with the tech firm, in her initial 2021 ruling in the same case, she ordered the company to allow apps to link to alternative payment systems.
Various parties appealed the decision, including to the Supreme Court in 2024. But they ultimately did not overturn it. In response, the phone maker imposed a 12% to 27% commission, prompting Epic to beg Gonzalez-Rogers to hold Apple in contempt of her order.
After a fresh round of hearings that unfolded over nine months from last year until this year, Gonzalez-Rogers dropped a legal hammer on Apple.
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