A new Apple-funded study performed by Analysis Group says that the United States App Store “facilitated over $400 billion in developer billings and sales in 2024.” This marks 2.9x growth in the ecosystem since 2019, according to the study.
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After a heavy lobbying campaign that included Apple CEO Tim Cook personally calling Texas Governor Greg Abbott to veto Texas Senate Bill 2420, known as the App Store Accountability Act, the bill was signed into law today.
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Apple is currently under fire for its App Store practices, with the most prominent recent issue being rules around in-app payment methods. Today the company has outlined the many ways its rules have protected users from attempted fraud, and thus saved those users billions.
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Tim Cook is personally involved in an attempt to stop a Texas child safety bill targeting the App Store from becoming law, the Wall Street Journal reports.
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Spotify was one of the first companies to take advantage of recent changes to the App Store Guidelines. The company swiftly submitted a new version of its app with links that make it easier for users to subscribe to Spotify Premium using external payment methods.
In an amicus brief filed in support of Epic Games this week, Spotify touts that it has already seen a measurable increase in Premium subscription conversions thanks to these changes.
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Epic Games made good on its recent promise by bringing Fortnite back to the iPhone and iPad in the U.S. after a federal court injunction forced Apple to change App Store rules around payments and commissions. Nearly five years after its removal, the game returns with a major change. Still, Fortnite is only available through the App Store in one region, and there are several reasons it could be removed again.
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Microsoft has filed a court brief in support of Epic Games, blaming Apple for its delay in plans to open an Xbox mobile store using.
While Apple yesterday allowed Fortnite back into the US App Store after some strong words from the judge, Microsoft says there’s still a very big problem …
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After a nearly five-year hiatus, Fortnite is back on the App Store for iPhone and iPad users in the United States. Epic Games announced the return of the battle royale gaming app this afternoon, and you can head to the App Store now to download it.
Fortnite is also back in the Epic Games Store and AltStore in the European Union.
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In the latest edition of the Power On newsletter, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman outlined some of his expectations for how Apple will remain competitive in the App Store payment processing market. Late last month, a judge ruled that Apple’s 27% commission on external payments was illegal. Many large developers have already begun implementing their own payment processing systems.
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Last week, Epic Games resubmitted Fortnite to the App Store in the United States. This followed a court ruling that stated Apple wasn’t allowed to charge a 27% commission on payments conducted through external payment services on the U.S. App Store.
However, when it submitted the new version of Fortnite for app review, Epic Games didn’t hear back for quite some time.
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Today, Apple announced upcoming changes to App Store pricing and developer proceeds. New tax adjustments will take effect immediately in Brazil, and additional pricing updates will roll out in multiple regions over the next few months.
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If you closely follow Apple’s inner workings (and since you’re here, I’m guessing you do), you know Phil Schiller has always been known for his unrelenting and fierce protectiveness of Apple and the App Store.
This is why perhaps the most surprising aspect of Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers’s recent scathing order to Apple in the Epic Games case was how Schiller emerged as the uncompromising good cop within the circular walls of Apple Park.
But here’s the thing: outwardly, Schiller is still Schiller.
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Update May 16, 2025, 8:36 a.m. PT: Apple tells Bloomberg that it did not take action to block Epic Games from releasing its Fortnite update in the European Union. Instead, the company asked it to resubmit the EU update without including the US to avoid impacting other regions.
There’s still no word on the status of Epic’s attempt to bring Fortnite back to the App Store in the US.
Last week, Epic Games announced that it had submitted Fortnite to the App Store in the United States. The move followed an injunction in which a federal judge said Apple couldn’t charge a 27% commission on out-of-app purchases initiated through in-app links.
In a new statement today, however, Epic says that Apple has “blocked” this submission…
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Update:
This message has been live in the App Store since the beginning of Apple’s DMA compliance efforts in March 2024.
In August 2024, Apple announced multiple changes to its compliance plan – including a change to the disclosure message that appears in the App Store for apps that do not use Apple’s In-App Purchase system. Apple proposed updating the disclosure to read:
Transactions in this app are supported by the developer and not Apple.
Learn more
The proposal also changed the design of the disclosure message, replacing the bright red “!” icon with a less aggressive gray “i” icon, as you can see below.
Apple tells 9to5Mac it was ready to implement the changes and that the EU took no issue with the updated disclosure sheet. According to Apple, however, the EU requested the company not implement the changes at that time and never followed up with further guidance. It then fined Apple $500 million for noncompliance last month.
Apple’s comments today align with a report from Politico last week, which said Apple tried addressing the EU’s concerns last summer but was stonewalled.
Here’s the updated disclosure sheet proposed by Apple:
Original story below.
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Epic Games submitted Fortnite to the App Store for review on Friday. Now what? The version under review offers both Apple’s in-app purchase system and an external payment option via the Epic Games Store. But despite recent policy changes forced by a federal injunction, Apple isn’t legally required to approve the app. Still, rejecting Fortnite could deal Apple a blow in the court of public opinion, especially as its standing with developers continues to slip.
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Update: Epic Games says it has submitted Fortnite to the U.S. App Store for review. The ball is now in Apple’s court to approve the app submission.
If Fortnite does return to the U.S. App Store this week, it won’t be before Friday. That’s according to Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney, who shared an update on the long-awaited comeback today.
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Apple has asked the U.S. District Court in Northern California to pause the enforcement of new App Store rules following its recent loss to Epic Games.
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While some companies, including Spotify, Amazon, and Patreon, have been quick to jump at the opportunity to add external payment links to their apps, Netflix is taking a slower approach.
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Epic Games‘ five year legal battle against Apple has cost the developer well over $100M in legal fees alone, and CEO Tim Sweeney says that the total cost has been north of a billion dollars.
While Sweeney thinks it was worth it, one high-profile Apple commenter has his doubts – suggesting the legal victory doesn’t necessarily mean Fortnite will be allowed back into the App Store …
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Patreon has released an updated version of its iOS app that allows fans in the U.S. to bypass Apple’s in-app payment system when signing up for new memberships, effectively sidestepping the 30% App Store commission.
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A Florida congresswoman has introduced a new bill targeting Apple, aiming to boost competition and expand consumer choice by mandating third-party marketplaces like the EU.
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The hits keep coming for Apple and its App Store policies. A new class-action lawsuit filed today alleges that Apple “penalized developers who sought to use linked payments with fees that rendered it economically non-viable.
The lawsuit follows an injunction handed down last week, in which Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers barred Apple from charging commission or otherwise interfering with developers’ ability to direct customers to payment methods outside of the App Store.
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Last week, Apple was handed a court decision in its Epic Games case that forced a major App Store rule change, and now the company has filed its notice of appeal.
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Apple has officially approved the first app with links to external payment options in the United States. After submitting its update to Apple yesterday afternoon, Spotify says that Apple has approved a new version of the app that takes advantage of the latest changes to the App Store Guidelines.
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