APPLE REVERSES COURSE AND CLEARS WAY FOR EPIC GAMES TO SET UP RIVAL IPHONE APP STORE IN EUROPE

Apple has reversed course under regulatory pressure and cleared the way for a nettlesome adversary, video game maker Epic Games, to set up an alternative store for iPhone apps in Europe.

The about-face disclosed is the latest twist in a bitter fight between Apple and Epic Games, the maker of the popular Fortnite video game, over the way iPhone apps are distributed and the fees for digital transactions that occur within them.

Apple attributed the change of heart to reassurances from Epic that it won’t violate its requirements for getting access to iPhone owners. Epic had brazenly broke the rules in the U.S. in 2020 to trigger an antitrust lawsuit alleging Apple’s App Store is a monopoly.

After a month-long trial, a federal judge in 2021 rejected most of Epic’s claims in a ruling that withstood appeals, but the bickering with Apple has continued.

Apple had rejected Epic’s attempt to set up an account that would have allowed it to set up an alternative store for downloading iPhone apps — something that Apple has held exclusive control over for more than 15 years.