I fallet Epic Games Vs. Apple förlorade Epic visserligen i att bevisa att Apple har monopol på marknaden. Däremot dömde rätten Apple till att de inte längre kan förbjuda utvecklare av spel och applikationer att använda egna betalsystem i App Store.
Apple Inc. and its officers, agents, servants, employees, and any person in active concert or participation with them (“Apple”), are hereby permanently restrained and enjoined from prohibiting developers from (i) including in their apps and their metadata buttons, external links, or other calls to action that direct customers to purchasing mechanisms, in addition to In-App Purchasing and (ii) communicating with customers through points of contact obtained voluntarily from customers through account registration within the app.
Epic kommer dock tvingas betala Apple för kontraktsbrott angående Fortnite.
On the counterclaim, in favor of Apple on the counterclaim for breach of contract. Epic Games shall pay (1) damages in an amount equal to (i) 30% of the $12,167,719 in revenue Epic Games collected from users in the Fortnite app on iOS through Epic Direct Payment between August and October 2020, plus (ii) 30% of any such revenue Epic Games collected from November 1, 2020 through the date of judgment, and interest according to law.
Så här säger rätten om monopolverksamhetsbedömningen.
Given the trial record, the Court cannot ultimately conclude that Apple is a monopolist under either federal or state antitrust laws. While the Court finds that Apple enjoys considerable market share of over 55% and extraordinarily high profit margins, these factors alone do not show antitrust conduct. Success is not illegal. The final trial record did not include evidence of other critical factors, such as barriers to entry and conduct decreasing output or decreasing innovation in the relevant market. The Court does not find that it is impossible; only that Epic Games failed in its burden to demonstrate Apple is an illegal monopolist.
Allt detta började ju med en konflikt över Fortnite och om spelet nu kommer tillbaka till App Store oklar. De båda parterna verkar inte direkt vara bästa vänner och Apple har också full rätt att bestämma själva vad de vill ha på App Store.
Apple’s termination of the DPLA and the related agreements between Epic Games and Apple was valid, lawful, and enforceable, and (ii) Apple has the contractual right to terminate its DPLA with any or all of Epic Games’ wholly owned subsidiaries, affiliates, and/or other entities under Epic Games’ control at any time and at Apple’s sole discretion.
Det hela började ju när Epic gjorde modifieringar i Fortnites betalningsmekanik, något som Apple blev så irriterade över att de tog bort spelet från App Store. Epic stämde då Apple under konkurrenslagarna och för monopolverksamhet. Apple kontrade med att kontringsstämma Epic för kontraktsbrott för att de ändrade i Fortnite så pass mycket att de tvingades ta bort spelet från sin App Store.
För den som vill läsa domen som helhet finns den här och här.
