Fortnite is coming back to the App Store in Australia tomorrow, thanks to a ruling by the Australia Federal Court.
In antitrust litigation, the Australia Federal Court told Apple to today open up iOS after finding they violated competition law. And here’s what’s changing in Australia in March 2027:
- iOS will be open to third party app stores
- Australian users will be able to download apps directly from developers
- Developers will be able to offer only alternative payment systems and Apple can’t require devs to offer Apple’s IAP, without charging junk fees
- Apple cannot block developers from pointing users outside apps to make purchases
- Apple is barred from charging junk fees on purchases made in third party app stores
“This is great news for developers worldwide and iOS users in Australia who will benefit from an open mobile app ecosystem,” said Epic Games, owner of Fortnite, in a statement.
We’ll see what Apple has to say about the legal case. But the victory is one more notch in Epic’s worldwide effort to enable game and app developers to have more choice and competition when it comes to choosing app stores. The opening of iOS to third-party stores in Australia means devs will be able to bypass Apple fees and open their own links to their own direct-to-consumer stores on Apple’s platform.
Fortnite was originally removed from Apple’s App Store in August 2020 after Epic Games added its own direct payment system, triggering Apple’s ban and the long-running legal battle.
More than six years later, the litigation around the world is still proceeding, but Epic has been able to win rights for itself and game devs in the U.S. against both Apple and Google.