A federal appeals court sent Apple a last-minute adjournment Wednesday, accepting a request to suspend a legal order that would require the company to make policy changes to the App Store that could help app developers circumvent what they say are unfair fees.
Had the appeals court not ruled, Apple would have had to start Thursday allowing companies to add links to their apps that lead customers to external websites where those companies can pay for their services or subscriptions. This would have prevented Apple from making a cut of up to 30 percent on these transactions.
The order was first made in September as part of the project. Decision in a year-long lawsuit between Apple and Epic Games, the creator of the popular video game Fortnite. Epic has sued Apple, accusing it of engaging in anti-competitive behavior that harms developers and consumers through its fees and strict App Store rules.
In a brief document, three judges in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit wrote that Apple could wait to make any changes to the Epic case until the appeal process, which could take more than a year, is concluded.
The decision adds another to a long-running legal battle over whether app developers have the right to inform their customers about ways to pay for their services outside of the App Store.
later three week trial In May, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in Oakland ruled largely in Apple’s favor, saying the tech giant was not a monopolist.
But he said Apple violated California competition law with its so-called anti-redirect provision, which prevents developers from telling their customers about ways to pay outside of the App Store. Judge Gonzalez Rogers ordered Apple to drop the anti-steering rule until December.
Apple appealed the decision He requested that Judge Gonzalez Rogers’ decision on the anti-direction rule stay pending the appeal process. HE The company refused the request. In November, however, the federal appeals court disagreed with him.
“Apple, at the very least, showed that its appeal raised serious questions about the merits of the district court’s ruling that Epic Games Inc. Written by the judges in the appellate court. They added that Apple has “done enough irreparable damage” to the App Store if it has to make policy changes.
In a statement, Apple thanked the appeals court and reiterated its argument against changing the strict App Store rules. “Our concern is that these changes will create new privacy and security risks and disrupt the user experience that customers love about the App Store,” the company said.
Epic Games declined to comment.
With Wednesday’s ruling, Apple bought some time, but if it loses on appeal it may ultimately have to abide by Judge Gonzalez Rogers’ ruling.