Apple agreed to ease the App Store restrictions for its developers on Thursday. The makers of the iPhone are awaiting the same judge's decision in another App Store controversy filed by Fortnite developers.
Therefore, an interim agreement was reached in a group action.
This agreement includes changes to the way all developers communicate with their customers. This is an issue raised by the trial judge himself.
However, Apple has retained most of the App Store business practices that are challenged by the courts and the law.
A small group of developers filed a lawsuit in 2019, claiming that Apple violated antitrust laws, including charges of up to 30%.
The Cupertino, California-based company has managed to reach a settlement that targets American developers, earning at least $ 1 million a year. So developers are complaining that Apple's pay is too high.
Apple is waiting for a much bigger antitrust decision in the lawsuit filed by Fortnite's creator company, Epic Games. The settlement, proposed Thursday, requires the approval of Federal District Court Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers of the Northern District of California, who is also expected to rule on the Epic case.
As part of Thursday's deal, Apple said it would make changes to the App Store. This includes extending last year's transactions by three years and reducing fees for small developers to 15%.
Developers have long been able to fund other forms of payment outside of their applications to avoid Apple charges. Some applications, such as Netflix, avoid the payment system within the company application that is available in the App Store.
Apple, on the other hand, also plans to create a $ 100 million support fund for small developers.
Of course we are waiting for the court decision.
