The ongoing legal battle between Apple and Epic Games marches on, with the fate of the mobile version of the blockbuster hit Fortnite hanging in the balance. The trial itself is set to begin in just a few days, and the two companies are still taking potshots at each other. The most recent insight reveals that, despite Apple's claims of the ubiquity and utility of the iOS App Store, it was never quite the money maker for Epic that it was made out to be.
The claim might come as a surprise to anyone who's been following the legal saga closely since Fortnite's removal from the App Store and the Google Play Store last year. Ostensibly the litigation hinges on anti-trust laws, and was born of Epic Games' long-simmering dissatisfaction with the large cut of in-app revenue that both companies have pocketed. As such, it might seem counterintuitive that, according to recent court documents, iOS revenue accounted for just 7 percent of the total between 2018 and 2020, trailing way behind home consoles.
PlayStation 4 was confirmed as the biggest earner for the game, generating an astounding 46.8% of Fortnite's total revenue in the same period, followed by Xbox One's 27.5%. iOS ranked a paltry fifth out of all the game's platforms, and former Epic CFO Joe Babcock was quoted in a new, separate deposition confirming that "iOS was always the lowest or the second lowest if Android was listed." He went on to explicitly say that, month to month, iOS generated less revenue than the PS4, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, and PC versions of the game.
For those wondering why Epic would go to war over 7% of the wildly popular battle royale game's money, the question at least partially answers itself. When mobile platforms represent such a small portion of Fortnite's billions of dollars in revenue, the risk of alienating those platform holders drops away drastically. In other words, Epic can afford to antagonize Apple and Google since they've got such a hefty cushion from Sony and Microsoft to fall back on.
Still, it does raise some other questions about Epic's legal battle. If it's not actually about the money, many of those following along may be wondering why the company is pursuing it so doggedly. Perhaps a multi-billion-dollar company really is finally standing up for the little guy to stop titans like Apple and Google from throwing their weight around so much. Or perhaps they - or one of their new investors - are considering a move into the mobile app store market and trying to hamstring their competitors ahead of time with anti-trust suits and precedents.
In any case, fireworks are sure to fly when Epic and Apple make their way to court on Monday. And if the stress gets too much, they won't even be able to blow off some steam by playing Fortnite on mobile, so hopefully, someone brought a Switch with them.
Fortnite is out now for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S.
