Apple violated a US court order that required the iPhone maker to allow greater competition for app downloads and payment methods in its lucrative App Store and will be referred to federal prosecutors, a federal judge in California ruled on Wednesday.
US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in Oakland said in an 80-page ruling that Apple failed to comply with her prior injunction order, which was imposed in an antitrust lawsuit brought by โFortniteโ maker Epic Games.
Apple is in the crosshairs for failing to reform its App store to allow greater competition for app downloads and payment methods.Credit: AP
โAppleโs continued attempts to interfere with competition will not be tolerated,โ Gonzalez Rogers said. โThis is an injunction, not a negotiation. There are no do-overs once a party wilfully disregards a court order.โ
Gonzalez Rogers referred Apple and one of its executives, Alex Roman, vice president of finance, to federal prosecutors for a criminal contempt investigation into their conduct in the case.
Roman gave testimony about the steps Apple took to comply with her injunction that was โreplete with misdirection and outright lies,โ the judge wrote.
Neither Apple nor Epic immediately responded to requests for comment.
Epic accused Apple of stifling competition for app downloads and overcharging commissions for in-app purchases.
Gonzalez Rogers in 2021 found Apple violated a California competition law and ordered the company to allow developers more freedom to direct app users to other payment options.
Apple failed last year to persuade the US Supreme Court to strike down the injunction.
Epic Games told the court in March 2024 that Apple was โblatantlyโ violating the courtโs order, including by imposing a new 27 per cent fee on app developers when Apple customers complete an
app purchase outside the App Store. Apple charges developers a 30 per cent commission fee for purchases within the App Store.
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