Apple could be eventually forced into making important changes to the App Store if it loses its trial with Epic Games. The tech giant and Epic Games are in the middle of a courtroom battle for Apple’s control of the App Store and the iOS and iPadOS ecosystem.
It is a lawsuit that could potentially cost the company billions of dollars if everything went Epic’s way and not from damages. The company could be forced into changing policies about what apps can or can’t do, which could impact its potential revenue in the future.
Epic Games wants the ability to have alternative payment systems when it comes to app-related purchases. The company wants to be able to give customers the opportunity to pay for their in-app purchases via a different payment provider than the one Apple offers.
It also wants to be able to tell users that there are other ways of paying for goods and not necessarily through their device. Current policies prohibit apps from such activity, like telling users they can get a cheaper deal from the company’s website.
The company also wants the ability for apps to be side-loaded by customers without needing to go through Apple’s App Store. Moreover, Epic Games wants users to be able to access a third-party app marketplace. That could be used to buy apps as well as other items, completely independent of the App Store and Apple’s digital storefronts.
Apple and its business model
The potential changes could create a lot of challenges, and the tech giant stands to lose revenue. The company could see a reduction of revenue, and the remaining income still has to cover various costs. The App Store costs the tech giant a lot of money to run, as it has to keep the store online, host apps, etc. If Apple loses out of commission the company may have to recoup the shortfall in other ways.
It is highly unlikely that the company would pass on the cost of running the App Store onto customers directly. But if Apple is forced to recover its costs somehow, this could be in the form of other fees to developers.
