New anti-monopoly law passed in South Korea that makes it illegal for tech giants like Apple and Google to force developers to integrate their payment gateways in their apps.
Apple has refused to reinstate Fortnite on their App Store in spite of the new law.
US Senators are passing a similar legislation that outlaws mandating the use of Google/Apple’s payment gateways.
Last year, when Epic announced that players will be able to make direct payments on Fortnite, bypassing the app store’s own payment systems, Apple retaliated by banning the game from the App Store. Now, even with an anti-monopoly law passed in South Korea, the tech giant is refusing to reinstate the game.
What is the anti-monopoly law in question here?
South Korea made global headlines when it passed a law that banned Google and Apple from forcing tech developers from integrating their payment systems in their apps. In August this year, US Senators followed suit when they also announced a legislation that will enforce similar laws, making it illegal for brands like Google and Apple from mandating the use of their payment systems in apps. As a result, we may see several smaller payment gateways rise, now that the playing field has been levelled a bit.
What’s Apple’s stance on Fortnite?
In spite of the laws being passed, Apple has refused to reinstate Fortnite on the app store. Their official communication on the same, via Twitter, is that they don’t plan to get the game back on the App Store until Epic plays “by the same rules as everyone else".
This tweet came in response to Epic’s announcement on Twitter shortly after the new anti-monopoly law was passed in South Korea. They said "Epic intends to re-release Fortnite on iOS in Korea offering both Epic payment and Apple payment side-by-side in compliance with the new Korean law,"
Epic and Apple are currently embroiled in a class action lawsuit in the USA.
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Kajoli Anand Puri
Kajoli is a tech-enthusiast with a soft-spot for smart kitchen and home appliances. She loves exploring gadgets and gizmos that are designed to make life simpler, but also secretly fears a world run by AI. Oh wait, we’re already there. View Full Profile
