Fortnite Returning to iOS App Store After Epic Games Wins Legal Battle Against Apple

Fortnite will return to the iOS App Store in the United States next week after nearly five years of absence, following a major legal victory by Epic Games against Apple.

The popular battle royale game was removed from Apple's platform in August 2020 when Epic Games deliberately broke Apple's rules by adding its own payment system to avoid the tech giant's 15-30% commission fees on in-app purchases.

On April 30, 2025, U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that Apple had violated a 2021 court injunction that required the company to allow developers to direct users to alternative payment methods outside of Apple's ecosystem.

"Apple willfully violated and ignored a 2021 decision that came out of the Epic Games case," wrote Judge Rogers in the court filing. The judge found that Apple had "outright lied" to the court and "at every turn chose the most anticompetitive option" to maintain its revenue stream.

The ruling specifically targets Apple's 27% commission fee on purchases made through website links inside apps, which Epic and other developers argued effectively eliminated any pricing advantage they could offer customers through alternative payment methods.

"This is an injunction, not a negotiation," Judge Rogers stated firmly in her 80-page ruling. "There are no do-overs once a party willfully disregards a court order."

In a particularly harsh rebuke, the judge accused Apple's Vice President of Finance, Alex Roman, of "outright lying under oath." The court found that while Apple claimed to be complying with orders to allow developers to direct users to alternative payment methods, internal business documents revealed that they did not. Roman's testimony apparently contradicted these internal documents.

The judge has referred the case to the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California to investigate whether criminal contempt proceedings are appropriate against Apple and its executives.

Following the ruling, Epic Games founder and CEO Tim Sweeney quickly announced on X (formerly Twitter) that Fortnite would return to the iOS App Store in the United States next week.

"NO FEES on web transactions. Game over for the Apple Tax," Sweeney wrote. "Apple's 15-30% junk fees are now just as dead here in the United States of America as they are in Europe under the Digital Markets Act."

Sweeney also proposed a peace offering to Apple, stating, "If Apple extends the court's friction-free, Apple-tax-free framework worldwide, we'll return Fortnite to the App Store worldwide and drop current and future litigation on the topic."

In response to the ruling, Apple issued a brief statement saying, "We strongly disagree with the decision. We will comply with the court's order and we will appeal."

According to Variety, Sweeney elaborated on the court's decision during a press call, calling it "a huge victory for developers." He explained, "This means all developers can offer both Apple's payment service side by side with their own payment service. Apple cannot charge fees on the developers' own payment services, and developers are free to pass along savings to customers through differentiated pricing."

The legal battle between Epic Games and Apple has been ongoing since 2020, with Epic arguing that Apple's control over its App Store creates an illegal monopoly. Although Judge Rogers had rejected Epic's monopoly claims in an earlier ruling, she ordered Apple to lower barriers protecting its payment system.

This ruling aligns with similar regulatory changes in Europe, where the Digital Markets Act has already forced Apple to allow alternative payment methods without additional fees.

For Fortnite players, the return to iOS devices means they can once again enjoy the popular game on iPhones and iPads without worrying about additional costs imposed by Apple. The game had amassed around 100 million monthly active users as of December 2024, according to Sweeney.