Here’s what you need to know about Epic and Apple’s war over Fortnite

Fortnite has been kicked from the iOS App Store, after Epic set up a direct payment system to bypass Apple's 30% cut of all purchases on the platform. Now, Epic has filed a lawsuit against Apple, alleging that the App Store constitutes an unlawful monopoly, and begun a #FreeFortnite PR campaign in an effort to bring fans in on the game publisher's side. Here's a breakdown of what's happened and what it means for Fortnite.

The Apple App Store and Google Play Store both charge a 30% fee on most purchases made through each platform. 30% is standard for most digital sales platforms, including those on mobile devices, consoles, and through PC services like Steam. Epic Games as an organisation is not a fan of that 30% cut being standard. That was a large part of the launch of the Epic Games Store as a competitor to Steam, offering a profit structure where Epic would take a smaller, 12% cut of sales.

In July, Epic chief Tim Sweeney hinted at similar dissatisfaction with mobile storefronts, as Apple and other big tech companies faced antitrust hearings in the US. Sweeney told CNBC that "If every developer could accept their own payments and avoid the 30% tax by Apple and Google we could pass the savings along to all our consumers and players would get a better deal on items. And you’d have economic competition.”

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