Apple threatens to boot Epic—including Unreal Engine—off Mac and iOS
The new legal battle between game developer Epic and iPhone-maker Apple continues to heat up, as Epic says Apple will be cutting it off from the developer platform for Mac and iOS before the end of this month.
Epic wrote in a court filing (PDF) that Apple said its membership in the Developer Program will be terminated as of August 28. According to Epic, Apple's move threatens not only Fortnite but also every game that uses Unreal Engine: "By August 28, Apple will cut off Epic's access to all development tools necessary to create software for Apple's platforms—including for the Unreal Engine Epic offers to third-party developers, which Apple has never claimed violated any Apple policy," Epic said.
How Apple's battle with Epic Games could affect hundreds of other games beyond Fortnite
If Apple disables Epic's developer account, then the company won't be able to maintain the Unreal Engine for iPhones and other Apple computers. Unreal is a long-standing set of technologies for displaying 3D graphics. Other game-makers license it from Epic so they don't have to re-build the same functions from scratch, and it's used in many popular games, although it's more popular on consoles and PCs than for mobile games.
Also at The Verge and VentureBeat.
Previously:
Fortnite Maker Sues Apple after Removal of Game From App Store
Related Stories
Fortnite maker sues Apple after removal of game from App Store:
Apple Inc on Thursday removed popular video game "Fortnite" from its App Store for violating the company's in-app payment guidelines, prompting developer Epic Games to file a federal lawsuit challenging the iPhone maker's rules.
Apple cited a direct payment feature rolled out on the Fortnite app earlier on Thursday as the violation.
Epic sued in U.S. court seeking no money from Apple but rather an injunction that would end many of the company's practices related to the App Store, which is the only way to distribute native software onto most iPhones.
[...] Apple takes a cut of between 15% and 30% for most app subscriptions and payments made inside apps, though there are some exceptions for companies that already have a credit card on file for iPhone customers if they also offer an in-app payment that would benefit Apple. Analysts believe games are the biggest contributor to spending inside the App Store, which is in turn the largest component of Apple's $46.3 billion-per-year services segment.
In a statement, Apple said Fortnite had been removed because Epic had launched the payment feature with the "express intent of violating the App Store guidelines" after having had apps in the store for a decade.
"The fact that their (Epic) business interests now lead them to push for a special arrangement does not change the fact that these guidelines create a level playing field for all developers and make the store safe for all users," Apple said in a statement.
Microsoft Issues Statement In Support of Epic Games To Remain On Apple Ecosystem
Earlier this afternoon, Microsoft's Executive Vice President of Gaming Phil Spencer issued a statement on Twitter declaring a desire for ongoing support for Unreal Engine within the Apple ecosystem. With many developers opting to use Unreal Engine over other proprietary development tools, suddenly shutting off access to an entire marketplace for gaming could have a huge impact with bifurcating mobile gaming in general.
The statement released today was prepared by Kevin Gammill, the General Manager for Gaming Developer Experiences for Microsoft. Kevin declared that the Unreal Engine provided by Epic Games, if not kept available on the Apple App Store for developers, would require Microsoft "to choose between abandoning its customers and potential customers on the iOS and macOS plattforms or choosing a different game engine when preparing to develop new games."
Previously: Fortnite Maker Sues Apple after Removal of Game From App Store
Epic-Apple Feud Could Also Affect Third-Party Unreal Engine Games
A Northern California federal judge has issued a temporary restraining order blocking Apple from going forward with plans to terminate Epic Games' Apple Developer Program account, which would have had a major impact on the development of Unreal Engine on iOS. At the same time, the judge left in place Apple's current blocking of Fortnite from the iOS App Store after Epic tried to insert an alternative payment platform into the mobile game.
Previously:
Microsoft Issues Statement in Support of Epic Games to Remain on Apple Ecosystem
Epic-Apple Feud Could Also Affect Third-Party Unreal Engine Games
Fortnite Maker Sues Apple after Removal of Game From App Store
Fortnite's Android Version Bypasses Google Play to Avoid 30% "Store Tax"
Apple turns post-lawsuit tables on Epic, will block Fortnite on iOS:
Weeks after Epic's apparent "win" against Apple in the Epic Games v. Apple case, Apple issued a letter denying Epic's request to have its developer license agreement reinstated until all legal options are exhausted. This effectively bans Fortnite and any other software from the game maker from returning to Apple's App Store for years.
Epic was handed an initial victory when the US District Court for Northern California issued an injunction on September 10 ordering Apple to open up in-game payment options for all developers. At the time, the injunction was something of a moral victory for Epic—allowing the developer to keep its in-game payment systems in its free-to-play Fortnite intact while avoiding paying Apple a 30 percent fee that had previously covered all in-app transactions.
But now Epic has faced a significant reversal of fortune.
The better thing would be to ban all micro-transactions. Instead this is more like a couple thieves divvying up the loot from the candy they stole from children. Sure, they didn't "steal anything", but kids aren't allowed to play the slot machines in Casinos, either.
Previously:
Apple Can No Longer Force Developers to Use In-App Purchasing, Judge Rules
Valve Gets Dragged into Apple and Epic’s Legal Fight Over Fortnite
Judge Dismisses Apple’s “Theft” Claims in Epic Games Lawsuit
Microsoft Thumbs its Nose at Apple With New “App Fairness” Policy
Your iPhone Copy of Fortnite is About to Become Out of Date [Updated]
Judge Issues Restraining Order Protecting Unreal Engine Development on iOS
Microsoft Issues Statement in Support of Epic Games to Remain on Apple Ecosystem
Epic-Apple Feud Could Also Affect Third-Party Unreal Engine Games
Fortnite Maker Sues Apple after Removal of Game From App Store
Epic CEO Tim Sweeney has long been an outspoken opponent of what he sees as Valve's unreasonable platform fees for listing games on Steam, which start at 30 percent of the total sale price. Now, though, new emails from before the launch of the competing Epic Games Store in 2018 show just how angry Sweeney was with the "assholes" at companies like Valve and Apple for squeezing "the little guy" with what he saw as inflated fees.
The emails, which came out this week as part of Wolfire's price-fixing case against Valve (as noticed by the GameDiscoverCo newsletter), confront Valve managers directly for platform fees Sweeney says are "no longer justifiable."
[...]
The first mostly unredacted email chain from the court documents, from August 2017, starts with Valve co-founder Gabe Newell asking Sweeney if there is "anything we [are] doing to annoy you?" That query was likely prompted by Sweeney's public tweets at the time questioning "why Steam is still taking 30% of gross [when] MasterCard and Visa charge 2-5% per transaction, and CDN bandwidth is around $0.002/GB." Later in the same thread, he laments that "the internet was supposed to obsolete the rent-seeking software distribution middlemen, but here's Facebook, Google, Apple, Valve, etc."
[...]
The second email chain revealed in the lawsuit started in November 2018, with Sweeney offering Valve a heads-up on the impending launch of the Epic Games Store that would come just weeks later. While that move was focused on PC and Mac games, Sweeney quickly pivots to a discussion of Apple's total control over iOS, the subject at the time of a lawsuit whose technicalities were being considered by the Supreme Court.
[...]
In a follow-up email on December 3, just days before the Epic Games Store launch, Sweeney took Valve to task more directly for its policy of offering lower platform fees for the largest developers on Steam.
[...]
After being forwarded the message by Valve's Erik Johnson, Valve COO Scott Lynch simply offered up a sardonic "You mad bro?"
(Score: 4, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 19 2020, @11:22PM (6 children)
"I am altering the deal. Pray I do not alter it further."
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 19 2020, @11:29PM (4 children)
The Emperor telling Darth Vader to bring his son to the dark side, vader proceeding to try and cut a side deal with Luke Skywalker, and then Palpatine frying his son in front of him when Vader says 'You're not my Daddy anymore!' :)
P.S. Did anyone else get a ridiculously gay vibe from Palpatine/Vader? I personally think Palpatine just needed some non-mechanical bunghole for his Dark Seed of the Force, and Vader wanted to take over the Daddy role as Emperor of the Galaxy. I'm sure someone more into the culture can give specific analogies :)
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 20 2020, @12:11AM (1 child)
One problem with your theory. Ani Skywalker knocked up a chick.
Palpatine could have chosen any member of the celibate priestly order of Jedi (c.f. Catholic priests) but he picked the one incel who strayed and got a girl preggers.
Obi Wan, well he was definitely in the closet. Or maybe that was just Ewen McGregor's effeminate acting.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 20 2020, @01:08AM
I always figured they considered Ani too old to be a Jedi because he'd remember having balls -- as the procedure for inducting young males into the Jedi includes castration. An ovariectomy would be done for the females (or appropriate surgery for whatever goes for the non-human species). Sure enough, they made an exception and let Ani in anyway, let him keep his balls (medically, at least), and sure enough when he's older he thinks with his dick and fucks up everything.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 20 2020, @02:28AM (1 child)
Dude, you get gay vibes from EVERYTHING!
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 20 2020, @12:16PM
Nah, it's just the iPhones setting off all the gaydar since iPhones are so incredibly gay.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Mykl on Thursday August 20 2020, @01:15AM
To be fair, in this case it was more like Apple saying "I am not altering the deal. Pray I continue to tolerate your presence".
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 19 2020, @11:28PM (4 children)
How can they boot them off the developer platform? Is it only possible to write mac os software with a subscriptions based IDE? Can't you just buy the IDE? Can't you just use gcc?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 19 2020, @11:39PM
They don't get blocked from the tools, they get blocked from being able to release in the App store, and without a developer account, they can't even push to an iPhone. But, they can still use the tools to compile.
(Score: 5, Informative) by Marand on Thursday August 20 2020, @03:34AM (2 children)
Because, among other things, they've been turning macOS into another mobile OS-style walled garden. Apple has a thing now called Developer ID [apple.com] where you get a certificate from Apple and use that to submit software to the company so that they can "notarize" it. They recently [apple.com] made this process mandatory for all macOS software, not just the app store.
From my understanding you can still run unsigned software if you want, but you have to jump through a but you have to jump through a bunch of hoops to do so, sort of like what one has to do to side-load Android APKs. So while technically still an open platform, the reality is most people will not be doing this, so any unsigned software will be limited in reach.
It's worth noting that Apple claims [apple.com] that this is an anti-malware feature ("signing software with a unique Developer ID and including a notarization ticket from Apple lets Gatekeeper verify that the software is not known malware and has not been tampered with") but are now weaponising it against Epic in retaliation for the Fortnite kerfluffle. They only started enforcing this signing policy six months ago and it's already being abused to punish a company instead of blocking malware as claimed.
According to this source [macrumors.com], the full list of things Apple is blocking (behind spoilers so it doesn't make this comment super long by default):
It even explicitly mentions that they're blocking Epic from working on Unreal Engine for macOS and iOS if they don't give up this fight and go back to giving Apple its cut of everything. The whole thing is very "nice business you got there, be a shame if something were to, eh, happen to it, y'know what I'm sayin?" I'm not a fan of either company, but this is an extremely bad look for Apple, and if they win this it probably won't be a good thing long-term for any developers except maybe Apple and Google.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 20 2020, @01:56PM (1 child)
sudo spctl --master-disable
Is this the "bunch of hoops" you're talking about ?
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Marand on Thursday August 20 2020, @09:32PM
Every source I've seen on the topic has said you need to do something like this [osxdaily.com], which is more than just a quick command-line option and done. It won't seem like much for people here, sure, but you have to consider how it seems for non-technical users (e.g. most macOS users). They're going to see it as "so I have to figure out how to open a terminal, paste this magic phrase, type a password, go to system prefs, find where this setting is, and pick this new option." That's jumping through a bunch of hoops, and some users will have issues with it. Sideloading on Android is pretty easy but getting people to use sideloaded apps is really difficult for the same reason.
Regardless of how easy or difficult it seems to do, the problem is that Gatekeeper's claimed to be a security feature to help protect against malware. By using it to block non-malware by developers Apple has decided to unperson, its claimed purpose is undermined. Now you'll have non-technical people blindly disabling it because legitimate software is being blocked, opening themselves up to real malware concerns, because Apple decided to use its supposed anti-malware feature as a weapon against a legitimate developer.
It's like when people were disabling Windows Vista's UAC prompts for being intrusive and annoying, completely undermining a real security feature, except that with Apple it's malice instead of incompetence.
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 19 2020, @11:34PM (6 children)
I suppose he's considered racist shit today, but remember, he was the Trust Buster.
Give credit where it's due. Apple/Android stores are definitely a trust/duopoly/gate keepers to serve the corporate interests.
Too bad, instead of Roosevelts, we have Trumps.
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 20 2020, @12:08AM
Susan B. Anthony is considered racist shit today. Don't sweat it.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Thursday August 20 2020, @12:13AM (1 child)
Not with Android, though, at least in theory.
adb install app_package.apk [android.com]
Samsung app store [samsung.com]
Amazon app store [amazon.com]
F-Droid app store [wikipedia.org]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by PiMuNu on Thursday August 20 2020, @01:51PM
I got given a cheap Kindle android tablet with the intention of jailbreaking, but never got around to actually jailbreaking. It works just fine for checking the weather forecast. Amazon know most stuff about me any way (credit card, address, email address, phone number, purchase history tells them everything they need to know I guess).
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 20 2020, @01:10AM (2 children)
Well, yeah. All white people are racist. Hadn't you heard?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 20 2020, @03:20AM
Don't know about that, but you certainly are a dipshit.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 20 2020, @02:02PM
The only annoying thing about my new identity as a racist is that I have all those hateful racists coming up to me thinking we're friends, thanking me for making them look nicer than they really are.
(Score: 1, Flamebait) by Mojibake Tengu on Thursday August 20 2020, @12:12AM (2 children)
Next year, all Epic/Unreal mobile games on Huawei, boosting Huawei's business greatly.
Then, Google kicks Unreal stuff from Google Play, ordered by decree of some funky President...
After that, Huawei's business boosted even more.
Fools, what do you expect? It was gaming what made funny PC a platform in early 90's.
Respect Authorities. Know your social status. Woke responsibly.
(Score: 2) by PinkyGigglebrain on Thursday August 20 2020, @09:40PM (1 child)
I truly hope it is not the same "funky President" we have now
"Beware those who would deny you Knowledge, For in their hearts they dream themselves your Master."
(Score: 2) by Mojibake Tengu on Thursday August 20 2020, @10:24PM
That does not matter. Any funky President will bully Huawei.
Respect Authorities. Know your social status. Woke responsibly.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 20 2020, @01:20AM
How does using their monopoly to hurt people using unreal engine not damage their case?
(Score: 2, Interesting) by oumuamua on Thursday August 20 2020, @02:27AM (2 children)
Keep it up and their value could fall below $2trillion
Interesting fact:
If someone paid you a $1/mile shipping fee and the destination was 1 light-year away, how much would you earn?
$5.88trillion
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday August 20 2020, @02:30AM
Cash on delivery, right? None of us here would ever earn the money.
(Score: 1) by oumuamua on Thursday August 20 2020, @02:45AM
similar idea:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YUWDrLazCg [youtube.com]
(Score: 3, Interesting) by rickatech on Thursday August 20 2020, @04:56AM (5 children)
TFA seems to omit this is entirely Epic trying to do and end around payments through Apple’s App Store. The spin this is about Apple just hating all over Epic is overblown. Epic, feel free to build out your own smartphone device and ecosystem. Google Play is no different, the wildly fragmented Android ecosystem notwithstanding (indeed what Apple has tried to avoid)
(Score: 2) by Common Joe on Thursday August 20 2020, @09:41AM (3 children)
You're missing the bigger picture. This is about two companies duking it out in a real-life monopoly game. Epic knows it can't build it's own walled garden, so it's fighting back the only way it can -- not in court, but in public opinion polls. Telling Epic to build their own smartphone and ecosystem is a terrible come back.
I'm not saying Epic is the good guy here. They also have monopolistic tendencies. To borrow the tagline from Alien vs Predator: "Whoever wins... we lose".
(Score: 2) by PiMuNu on Thursday August 20 2020, @01:58PM (2 children)
Why do you say Epic is a monopoly?
(Score: 2) by Booga1 on Thursday August 20 2020, @08:59PM (1 child)
He didn't say Epic is a monopoly, rather,
They are very similar to Apple in how they are trying to lock stuff up.
Epic literally pays companies to NOT publish games through other online stores. They are paying companies to give them "exclusives" on the PC, which isn't traditionally a thing. They're even paying developers to lock up games that were already crowdfunded and promised through other delivery options. [segmentnext.com] They even have the audacity to blame Valve [mspoweruser.com] for their own shenanigans. Though they did eventually offer refunds, [theverge.com] that's a whole lot of bullshit that shows exactly how they are as a business.
Even when they don't force truly exclusive commitments, they are convincing big name developers to give them a six month window of exclusivity(or more) for publishing rights(Borderlands 3).
Epic is just as anti-competitive as Apple, they just do their thing by paying developers to get them onto their system and off of anyone else's.
(Score: 2) by PiMuNu on Friday August 21 2020, @07:59AM
I take your point. But in the software realm, it is hard to conceive of a technique whereby a monopoly can be enforced. I have Steam and Epic store on my PC and that works great. I can pick and choose the cheapest vendor. If Epic gets enough market share that they interfere with Steam (using some Evil software) - then they become the source of all evil. This is essentially what Apple are doing, so they are order of magnitude worse.
(Score: 4, Informative) by stretch611 on Thursday August 20 2020, @09:48AM
Umm, there is a difference between apple and google/android.
With android, all you need to do is make one single settings change in order to download software on your own and run it on your phone.
With apple you need to jailbreak your phone and cut off any future apple updates. (and why I doubt the legality, they will probably claim to revoke your warranty as well.)
The whole point of Developer ids and app signing is not for enhanced security... It is to collect fees from the developer to join the programs and for collecting a portion of the sales from the manufacturer sponsored app store. (Yes, Microsoft too is guilty)
Now with 5 covid vaccine shots/boosters altering my DNA :P
(Score: 4, Insightful) by stretch611 on Thursday August 20 2020, @10:35AM
I expect apples fanbois to completely ignore information like this and continue to love their overpriced computers/phone as well as their rose-scented flatulence. (ofc, only they think it smells like roses.)
Instead, they will probably b!tch about epic and how the developers of programs that they used are no longer supported on their platform.
What I really do not understand is why developers even bother with apple anymore. I understand back when the smartphone was new and there were only a few apps in the store, it was prime season to strike it rich as long as your program did something useful... even if it didn't even do it well. But now the app store is so inundated with useless crapware and so many titles, there is no way to get your app noticed without some serious cash spent on marketing... even if your app is really good and actually useful.
It is not just the recent story about apple wanting epic to pay its protection money for its sales. We have all heard the stories about some apps that apple never approves for its stores. Even some cases where it is approved one day, than a bug patch is issued a few days later and the patch doesn't get accepted.
Or something like Vulkan, a cross platform, high performance graphics API. It is meant to be a modern successor to OpenGL and it works on windows, linux, consoles, I understand it even works on raspberry pis... But apple refuses to let it be supported... instead apple wants everyone writing apps for apples to use Metal... a graphics library that works on Apple... and nothing else. It reminds me of the early days of the iphone when apple rejected any app not made with Objective-C... and it refused to allow apps that went through a conversion program.
I have no love for microsoft either, (yes, I use linux,) and microsoft wants to control another walled garden with all its hardware similar to apple.... But at least microsoft has learned one thing... Don't screw with the developers... if all the devs leave you; your device becomes nothing but a really expensive paperweight.
Now with 5 covid vaccine shots/boosters altering my DNA :P