Apple Challenges US Judge’s ‘Extraordinary’ Contempt Ruling

Apple filed an appeal against the US district judge's contempt order which endangers the App Store's existence after Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers made her decision. The judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers issued a ruling last week which stated Apple intentionally broke the 2021 injunction from the Epic Games antitrust case by blocking alternative payment options and engaging in anti-competitive conduct. Apple described the court decision as "extraordinary" because it violates their right to control their business operations and intellectual property. The 2021 order resulted from Epic Games' argument that Apple's App Store commission rates between 15% and 30% constituted monopolistic practices. The court dismissed Epic Games' monopoly claims but enforced changes to support cheaper external payment options. Epic Games filed a complaint against Apple after the company introduced new developer fees as evidence of non-compliance. The court documents presented by Rogers showed that Apple executives including CEO Tim Cook selected "anticompetitive" options according to the judge. Apple requests to remove fee limitations because these restrictions result in annual financial losses of "substantial sums." Epic Games welcomed the court decision because it promotes market competition and user selection and plans to bring Fortnite back to iOS. The case now goes to the US Attorney for criminal contempt evaluation which intensifies the intense legal conflict.