Apple failed in court. External payments must be allowed by December 9 – Živé.sk

• Apple has failed to appeal to the district court, which has settled its dispute with Epico so far.
• So far, from December 9, the company must allow the use of external payment methods in iOS apps.
• Apple plans to appeal again, this time in the Federal Court of Appeals. He can reverse the September decision.

Apple is facing a problem. In a lawsuit against Epic, the court dismissed her appeal. Therefore, Apple is committed to allowing the use of external payment methods in iOS applications by December 9th. The company wants to resolve the situation further in the Federal Court of Appeals. The topic is devoted web The Verge.

Recall that the court ruled in Apple’s case against Epic still in September. However, none of the companies and were satisfied with the verdict both appealed against him in the same court. Both Apple and Epic were given another opportunity to express their views and try to change the court’s decision. While Epic’s lawyers’ testimony was scheduled for December 12, Apple’s lawyers came to court this week.

Although the court upheld Apple in September at several points, ruled in one case against him. Starting December 9, the Cupertino company must allow developers in the App Store to add links to external payment methods and payment gateways in their applications. In practice, this would mean that app developers would be able to avoid a 30% fee on their profits that Apple collects from them. We took a closer look at the court’s decision in a separate article.

They wanted to put it off indefinitely

On appeal, Apple asked the court to postpone the decision until all the judicial options of both parties had been exhausted and the judgment was genuinely final. The company itself she admittedthat it can take even a year, expecting him to win the lawsuit in the end. Epic called it a tactic to avoid this decision altogether.

However, in a statement before the judge, Apple’s lawyers stated that this was a major change in their business model as a reason for disagreeing with the decision. Therefore, they are said to need more time, even “months” to solve all technical and economic issues. They explained that for the first time in history, Apple would allow links to external payment services in applications. So they have to come up with ways to protect children, developers, customers themselves and also themselves.

The forced implementation of these changes, according to Apple, will not help its platform in any way, on the contrary. The manufacturer claims that adding external payment methods to apps could harm developers as well as customers.

The company further recalled that it had already complied with part of the court decision. In particular, it allowed developers to contact users of their applications and inform them that their digital services and content could be better purchased elsewhere. The catch is that they must not do directly in the application.

The court sees Apple’s ambiguities in ambiguity

The judge then pointed out discrepancies between Apple’s original request and his current dismissal. She emphasized that Apple had not asked for extra time to put the changes into practice. Instead, he wanted “a widespread delay that could last 3, 4 or 5 years.”

She added that Apple had not provided the court with sufficient evidence that the regulation would actually have “devastating” effects on its business. It therefore dismissed the appeal.

Apple still has a chance

However, this still does not mean that on December 9, we will definitely buy in iOS applications with a 30% discount. Apple has revealed that it plans to appeal to the Federal Court of Appeals. He has the power to review and reconsider the decision of the district court that has dealt with this case so far.

In conclusion, even in the case of a final decision against the company, it is questionable whether Apple applies the changes worldwide, including Slovakia. The decision of the American court binds the company only within the jurisdiction of the USA – it is not certain whether it will have to follow it in other markets as well.