Apple Changes Its Mind: Epic Games’ Developer Account Restored

In a surprising turn, Apple has decided not to end Epic Games’ developer accounts. As mentioned in an update on the Epic Games blog, Apple will restore Epic Games’ developer account.

Earlier this week, Apple had terminated Epic Games’ developer accounts. This was following tweets by Epic’s boss Tim Sweeny, criticizing Apple’s business methods. Before this, the European Union had ordered Apple to allow third-party apps and app stores on its platforms.

Bloomberg reported that Apple had to follow the European Union’s DMA policies. This allowed Epic Sweden to sign the developer agreement and join Apple’s Developer Program.

Epic Games said, “Apple has told us and committed to the European Commission that they will reinstate our developer account. This is a strong sign to developers that the European Commission will quickly enforce the Digital Markets Act and control gatekeepers. We are excited to launch the Epic Games Store and bring Fortnite back to iOS in Europe. Onward!”

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The Digital Markets Act (DMA) described by Epic Games sees Apple as a gatekeeper. It needs to let other apps and app stores onto its platforms. Even though Apple owns its platform, the law aims to stop a single entity from being the only distributor of apps, content, or information on a platform. This is to prevent monopoly. If Apple hadn’t changed its decision, it would have broken the DMA. This could have led to large fines for Apple in Europe.