It’s been already a couple of weeks that the war between Fortnite and Apple and Google exploded. This fight saw disappeared the game from both the stores. This means that the users can’t download it or upgrade it.
But which are the reasons of this war between the videogame that conquered the whole world and the two colossus? And which are the impact that we will have? Will be ever able the users Apple and Google to play to it?
Fortnite Mobile
Fortnite become famous on the fixed consoles, especially on Playstation, in the 2017. It was a global success, unmatched. No one it was already able to overthrow it, becoming the most profitable videogame ever, even being it a free to play! It was awared as Best Game of the Year and how Best Competitive Videogame in the 2018.
And, how it was predictable, really soon even the mobile version arrived. Fortnite Mobile makes its great entrance on march of the 2018, with a battle royale for Android and iOs.
The beginning of the war
Everything started few days before the mid august. Many videogamers thought to be able to avoid assemblages, locals and crowded beaches by going in a place without dangers: Fortnite. But suddenly something happened.
If we open the stores of Apple and Google we won’t find anymore Fortnite between the applications. And if we already downloaded it we won’t have the possibility to upgrade it and, so, we won’t be able to play to it anyway, until when the situation doesn’t change.
This happened after the announcement of Epic Games about the introduction of its own personal service of in-app payment. The service proposed by Epic Games was much more favourable for the users, because it hadn’t the percentage of the 30% kept by the stores.
But both Apple and Google answered to the announcement by eliminating Fortnite from their own stores, becuase “it compromised the established terms when it accepted to spread the app through their services”.
The system of in-app payments
Everything started, so, when Epic Games decided to break the relationship with Apple and Google about the systems of in-app payments. But what is the in-app payment?
Even though an application is free this can requires in-app payments to the users. This system is on the basic, for example, of Fortnite, that with the system of in-app payment allows the users to buy skins and so on.
Only with these incomes, Fortnite was able to earn, only last year, 4,7 billions of dollars.
Apple, Google and the systems of in-app payments
Here the problem arrives. To download an application on iPad or iPhone we must use the Apple Store. Google, instead, uses a less stringent system. Anyway the Playstore is the service most used by its users. But Fortnite was anyway available on the store, until less than a month ago.
It was already a while that many developers accused especially Apple, but even Google, to use a monopoly position that they have with their services to keep too high percentages.
Both, infact, Apple and Google, require that the in-app payments must be done through their payment systems, by keeping a percentage of the 30%.
A too high amount by considering that other services, like PayPal or Visa, keep just the 5%.
The legal battle of Fortnite
It was for this reason that Epic Games decided to undertake a real legal battle against the two colossus, which otherwise defend themselves by claiming that the developers of Fortnite perfectly knew their policy about the in-app payment.
This was a bomb destined to explode. Many are, infact, the developers that complained about it. Now, that to do it is a videogame with 350 million of users, the question was able to have a global echo.
The legal case against Apple and Google are settled on a court of the California and they will need a while to be done. Meanwhile Fortnite disappeared from the stores of Apple and Google. But they can have some problems while waiting too. Many videoplayers, infact, threatened to not buy anymore an iPhone if it won’t put again the videogame between the applications of the store.
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