Epic Games Launches Developer Webshops, Offers 0% Cut on First $1M Post Apple Ruling

Key Takeaways

• Epic Games is launching a new feature to help app developers build their own webshops.
• With new legal rulings in place, developers will be able to send players from games to make out-of-app purchases.
• Epic’s proposition is significantly cheaper than Apple’s in-app payment system.

Upon announcing a new feature to help developers build their own webshops, Epic Games said it would charge zero percent commission on the first $1 million in sales per app per year.

For revenues over $1 million, Epic will take a 12 percent cut.

The offer significantly undercuts Apple’s 30% fee on in-app purchases, just as the Big Tech giant has been chastised for failing to comply with a court order on the matter.

Out-of-App Payments at the Center of Legal Dispute

Before Epic sued over the matter, Apple prohibited app developers from selling app content without using App Store’s built-in payment system.

The court ultimately sided with Epic, ruling that Apple couldn’t force developers to use its payment system, which charges a 30% fee.

In response to the original court order, Apple changed its policy so that developers could promote external payment options but moved to collect a 27% commission from off-app purchases.

In the latest development, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers has struck down off-app payment fees, determining that they undermine the purpose of the initial injunction.

Apple Accused of Anticompetitive Conduct

In her initial ruling, Judge Rogers accused Apple of anticompetitive conduct and pricing.

She has now warned that the Big Tech company’s “continued attempts to interfere with competition will not be tolerated.”

Meanwhile, in the EU, the Digital Markets Act (DMA) expressly forbids mobile ecosystem gatekeepers from restricting off-app payments. It also bars Apple and Google from blocking rival app stores from listing on their platforms.

Epic Games Promotes Alternative to In-App Purchases

Following moves by courts and regulators to open up mobile ecosystems by cracking down on Apple and Google’s app store duopoly, Epic is taking full advantage of the newly competitive market.

The legal battle between Apple and Epic was originally prompted when the gaming giant introduced an alternative payment system for Fortnite.

But now, it wants to encourage other app developers to embrace out-of-app payments.

Epic said in a statement that the new webshops feature will “offer players out-of-app purchases as a more cost-effective alternative to in-app purchases, where Apple, Google, and others charge exorbitant fees. “