Apple recently faced a setback in its ongoing legal battle over app store payment rules. A United States appeals court decided to reverse an earlier order that had paused the proceedings while the tech giant tried to get the Supreme Court to review the case. Epic Games convinced the court that the delay was unnecessary, meaning the dispute will now head back to a lower court to figure out exactly what fees the iPhone maker can legally charge developers.
Epic convinces the court to drop the recent delay order
Earlier this month, the US Court of Appeals granted Apple a temporary pause. The company wanted to stop the case from returning to the district court while it prepared a Supreme Court appeal. Epic quickly pushed back, arguing that it did not have enough time to respond to the initial request and that the pause was just a tactic to delay a final decision on app store commissions.
The appeals court ultimately agreed with the game developer. In its latest decision, the court stated that Apple failed to prove the Supreme Court would actually take up the case or overturn the previous ruling. The court also noted that moving forward with the lower court proceedings would not cause any serious harm to the tech company.
The case heads back to a lower judge for hearings
Because of this new ruling, the legal fight goes back to Judge Gonzales Rogers. The lower court will now hold hearings to decide exactly what percentage Apple is allowed to charge developers who use alternative payment methods. Even if the Supreme Court eventually decides to step in, the appeals court believes these lower court discussions need to happen anyway.
Following the news, Epic quickly celebrated the reversal online. The gaming company stated that extra fees for outside purchases hurt both consumers and developers. Its CEO mentioned that the delay tactics are finally over, and the team is ready to continue the process in the district court.
