Epic Games Store and Fortnite are returning to iOS devices in Australia, following their removal from the App Store in 2020.
In an X post on August 12, 2025, Epic Games announced that an Australian court “found that Apple and Google abuse their control over app distribution and in-app payments to limit competition.”
“There are 2,000+ pages of findings that we’ll need to dig into to fully understand the details,” Epic Games continued. “This is a win for developers and consumers in Australia.”
As reported by Financial Review, a Federal Court judge found that Google and Apple’s app store dominance has reduced competition and likely resulted in developers paying higher commission fees.
He also found that Apple had “substantially lessened competition” by banning the distribution of native apps outside the App Store from its platforms.
“Apple’s centralised in-app system for the purpose of security does not entail that there is not a substantial anticompetitive purpose involved,” Judge Beach said.
However, the judge rejected claims that the companies had partaken in “unconscionable conduct” or breached consumer law.
“Apple faces fierce competition in every market where we operate,” an Apple spokesperson said in a statement to Financial Review. “We continuously invest and innovate to make the App Store the safest place for users to get apps, and a great business opportunity for developers in Australia and around the world.
“We welcome the court’s rejection of Epic’s demands that we distribute app stores from within the Google Play store … However, we disagree with the court’s characterisation of our billing policies and practices.”
Epic Games has been embroiled in a legal battle with Apple since August 2020, when the company removed Fortnite from its store following an update that allowed players to buy V-Bucks (Fortnite’s in-game currency) at a lower rate if they did so from Epic Games directly. This move prevented Apple from taking its usual 30% sales commission.
Apple claimed Epic Games had violated App Store guidelines, and in response, Epic Games filed an antitrust lawsuit.
The two companies have been back and forth to court since, with court rulings and new regional competition laws allowing Fortnite to return to the App Store in Japan, Europe, the U.S., and now Australia in recent months.
