Fortnite

Recent testimony in the ongoing legal battle between Apple and Fortnite developer Epic Games has revealed that major app developers have not embraced Apple’s new outside payment options earlier this year, citing high fees and a lack of meaningful changes. The judge in the case criticized Apple’s new policies, saying, “I’m looking for data and it sounds like you all made lots of decisions without data.”

Disney is reportedly investing $1.5 billion in Fortnite developer Epic Games to collaborate on a new persistent gaming universe bringing together Disney characters and stories with the massive reach of Epic’s hugely popular game.

Epic Games, the company behind the popular video game Fortnite, has defeated Google in its antitrust case accusing the Masters of the Universe of maintaining an app store monopoly, marking a pivotal moment in the ongoing scrutiny of Big Tech’s monopolistic practices.

In the ongoing antitrust case centered on Google’s app store practices, Fortnite developer Epic Games’ CEO Tim Sweeney accused the internet giant of employing ruthless tactics to maintain its stranglehold on the Android app market.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai recently faced a grueling 75-minute interrogation in a San Francisco federal court, centering around the alleged antitrust practices of the Google Play Store. His testimony is part of the second antitrust suit against the internet giant, this time brought by Fortnite developer Epic Games.

Google is set to defend its app store practices in federal court against allegations of antitrust violations brought by Epic Games, the developer of massively popular game Fortnite. At the heart of the lawsuit is Google’s app store “tax” which ranged to 15 to 30 percent of in-app purchases.

Epic Games has lost an early appeal at the U.S. Supreme Court in its case against Apple over the 30 percent transaction tax it levies on third-party app developers. SCOTUS ruled that Apple is not required to change the “Apple Tax” right away.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has announced the addition of Fortnite to the Olympic Esports Finals, with a special sharpshooting competition to take place on a Fortnite Creative Island.

Epic Games, the company behind the megapopular video game Fortnite has been ordered by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to pay $245 million to customers. The federal agency claimed Fortnite players were tricked into making in-game purchases using “dark patterns.”

The FTC has reportedly fined Epic Games, the developers behind the megapopular Fortnite video game, $520 million over children’s privacy violations and item shop charges. All parents of Fortnite gamers are familiar with the incessant request of gamers to buy more “V-bucks,” the currency used to make in-game purchases.

A group of parents have sued Epic Games, claiming the company got their children addicted to its Fortnite video game.

In a recent interview, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney commented on the future of the Metaverse, stating that he’s not sure Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s vision for a digital world will work.  Sweeney stated:  “I think if you strip the entertainment aspect from it, you end up with a super creepy version of America Online chat rooms!”

35 states have commented on their support for Epic Games in its ongoing legal battle with tech giant Apple. A letter signed by dozens of state attorneys general to a California appeals court reads: Apple’s conduct has harmed and is harming mobile app-developers and millions of citizens.”

Epic Games has filed an opening brief to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals aiming to overturn a previous ruling that Apple’s ownership of the iOS App Store does not constitute a monopoly. According to the Fortnite developer, “Apple’s conduct is precisely what the antitrust laws prohibit.”

An appeals court has put a pause on the ongoing case between Epic and Apple, placing a stay on the enforcement of an injunction issued by the lower court. Based on the ruling, Apple can maintain its current purchase system as the sole source of in-app payments on iPhones, despite previous rulings stating that the exclusive agreement was illegal.

The online game Fortnite has canceled the Travis Scott emote from its item shop following his performance at Astroworld Music Festival on Friday in Houston, Texas, where at least eight people were killed.

Tech giant Apple has reportedly decided to leave Fortnite banned from its App Store until its legal battle with the game’s developer Epic Games is resolved — a process that could take up to five years to complete.

Apple has been ordered to ease its tight restrictions on app developers by a judge’s ruling in the trial between Fortnite developer Epic Games and the Masters of the Universe.

Apple has stated that it won’t let Epic Games bring the megapopular Fortnite video game back to the App Store until the company agrees to “play by the same rules as everyone else.”

Apple has reportedly agreed to allow app developers to contact users to inform them about alternative payment options outside of the Apple app store ecosystem, marking a serious departure from the company’s previous policies. Apple takes up to 30 percent of revenues from developers for all purchases made within the app store, and is embroiled in a major lawsuit with Fortnite developer Epic Games over developers’ right to deal with customers directly.

A Brazilian Fortnite streamer known online as RaulZito has reportedly been arrested by Brazilian authorities on charges that he sexually assaulted two minors.

The government of Muslim-majority Indonesia on Monday called for a ban on the video game Fortnite after allegations that a recent software update allows players to desecrate a cube representing a holy Islamic site.

Apple’s top software engineer recently criticized the security of the company’s own Mac operating system while explaining why the company should not be forced to loosen its hold over iOS app distribution.

The judge overseeing the trial between Epic Games and Apple has reportedly hinted at a compromise that could satisfy at least some of the game developer’s concerns with Apple’s monopoly over in-app purchases made with iPhones and other iOS devices.

According to recently released court documents, the tech giant Apple considered taking “punitive measures” against Netflix after the streaming service disabled in-app purchases in its iOS app.

Apple and Epic Games are currently engaged in an intense legal battle related to App Store fees and Apple’s ban on third-party payment processors. The arguments each company plan to present in court are becoming clearer as their showdown in court approaches.

According to recently released legal documents, a senior Apple engineer compared the company’s App Store defenses against malicious actors to be like “bringing a plastic butter knight to a gunfight.” The senior employee also described the company’s review process for new apps as “more like the pretty lady who greets you… at the Hawaiian airport than the drug-sniffing dog.”

A recent report revealed that the video game industry has overtaken the sports and movie industries combined, in 2020, due to the Chinese coronavirus.

A judge has ordered Apple to produce extensive documentation from CEO Tim Cook and Senior VP Craig Federighi in the lawsuit filed by Epic Games over its megapopular game Fortnite.

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden has launched a get-out-the-vote effort in the popular video game Fortnite. The campaign created a custom map within the video game featuring “No Malarkey Station,” a train station where players can play mini-games encouraging them to vote.

In the latest update on the legal battle between Fortnite developer Epic Games and Apple, a judge has ruled that Apple cannot be forced to put the popular video game back in its App Store and criticized Epic Games for what she called deceitful practices and intentional breach of contract.

Speaking at the Atlantic Festival recently, Apple CEO Tim Cook discussed the antitrust issues that the tech giant is facing amongst a number of other topics.

In a recent court filing, tech giant Apple has accused  Epic Games of “starting a fire and pouring gasoline on it” by breaking Apple’s App Store rules.

In a recent interview with NPR, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney, whose company created the megapopular game Fortnite explained why he chose to launch a legal campaign against tech giants Apple and Google. According to Sweeney, the Big Tech Masters of the Universe “exploit” developers with the singular interest of furthering their “monopoly.”

Tech giant Apple is now seeking damages against Epic Games, the developers behind the wildly popular game Fortnite, which sued Apple alleging that the company took part in monopolistic practices in relation to its App Store.

Epic Games’ lawsuit against Apple is now well underway with the game developer scoring a partial win in the first ruling on the case. The court granted the developer a temporary restraining order against Apple following the tech giant’s threat to remove Epic’s Unreal Engine from multiple Apple platforms — an act of retaliation against the Fortnite company that would have impacted thousands of developers working on their own games and entertainment projects.