35 States Back Epic In Landmark Antitrust Case Against Apple

thegamer.com:

Most of the United States has filed suit against Apple in support of Epic as part of the appeal process from last year's big antitrust case.

As reported by Reuters (via Games Industry.biz), 35 US states have filed suit against Apple arguing that the company's conduct "has harmed and is harming mobile app-developers and millions of citizens." In addition, Apple "continues to monopolize app distribution and in-app payment solutions for iPhones, stifle competition, and amass supracompetitive profits within the almost trillion-dollar-a-year smartphone industry."

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Apple was first ordered to allow third-party payment options on its platform as part of the original ruling issued by California District Court Judge Gonzalez-Rogers. "Apple is engaging in anticompetitive conduct under California's competition laws," wrote Judge Gonzalez-Rogers, giving Apple until December 2021 to modify the App Store to allow third-party payments.

However, Apple's appeal argued that wasn't enough time to ensure those modifications could be done securely for millions of users. Apple's appeal was granted resulting in the company retaining full control of payments on iOS, at least for the moment.

But with 35 states accusing Apple of violating antitrust laws, the situation might not last. In addition to states attorneys general, the US Justice Department has also weighed in on the original ruling by calling it "flawed."

"The district court committed several legal errors that could imperil effective antitrust enforcement, especially in the digital economy,” the Department said in a statement.

This latest move comes during a time of heightened scrutiny of the power of