Epic Games has beaten Apple in a protracted court battle, forcing the latter to allow developers to use their own withdrawal systems. Tim Sweeney comments on how things have changed since the ruling.
According to Tim Sweeney, 40% of Fortnite players have already switched to Epic Games’ own payment system. The audience is attracted by bonuses: since the company no longer has to give 30% of revenue to intermediaries for no apparent reason, it returns 20% of the money spent back to users – this money can be spent in Fortnite or the Epic Games Store.
Sweeney is pleased with the outcome, although he did not expect the trial to drag on for years:
I expected the court to stop Apple from blocking Fortnite and to suspend us for a few weeks. But the process dragged on and we were suspended for five years.
The head of Epic Games believes that in the future the share of users in their own payment system will increase. The decision concerns not only their corporation, but all developers: now everyone can get rid of Apple’s bribe. Sweeney promises that his company will continue to fight for platform freedom.