Epic Games Store Rejected on iOS – Button Design Too Similar to Apple's

When the European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA) was passed, which pressured Apple to allow alternative app stores on iOS devices in the EU, Epic Games announced that it planned to launch the Epic Games Store on iOS in 2024.

On June 29, the Epic Games Newsroom wrote: On X It has submitted an application for Apple's approval for the Epic Games Store for iOS, and it aims to launch the app store, along with Fortnite on iOS, within “a few months.”

The same information channel wrote on July 5, just over a week later, that Apple had rejected the request, arguing that the design and placement of Epic Games’ “Install” button is too similar to Apple’s “Download” button. According to Epic Games, Apple should also find the so-called “in-app purchases” in the Epic Games Store to be too similar to “in-app purchases” in the App Store.

The European Commission has reported

the Three posts on X Which detailed recent events that ended with Epic Games describing Apple's decision as “arbitrary, disincentive, and a violation of the DMA.”

Epic Games wrote that it has reported the incident to the EU's supervisory body, the European Commission, and that the goal is to launch the Epic Games Store on iOS within the next few months — unless Apple puts more obstacles in the way.

The conflict between Apple and Epic Games has been ongoing since 2020, when Apple removed Fortnite from the App Store after Epic Games broke the rules by including its own payment system in the game.

Most recently, in March 2024, Apple closed the account of a Swedish developer who was set to develop the Epic Games Store for iOS, but regretted the decision the next day.