‌Epic Games‌ also shared a 'Nighteen Eighty-Fortnite' short as part of its swift and forceful PR campaign against Apple. Right after that happened, Epic announced a pre-prepared lawsuit against Apple, accusing Apple of being a 'behemoth seeking to control markets, block competition, and stifle innovation' and imposing 'anti-competitive restraints' and using 'monopolistic practices in markets' against ‌‌App Store‌‌ developers. Hours after the direct payment option was added, Apple pulled the Fortnite app from the iOS ‌App Store‌. It turned out to be a planned change that sparked a rapid response from Apple. This morning, Epic added a feature to Fortnite that allowed players to purchase V-Bucks in the Fortnite app with a direct payment that skirted the ‌App Store‌ rules prohibiting developers from accepting payments outside of the in-app purchase system. The fight between Apple and ‌Epic Games‌ heated up quickly over the course of the day. The stakes for consumers and app developers large and small couldn't be higher and ensuring that the iOS platform operates competitively and fairly is an urgent task with far-reaching implications.

Apple's unfair practices have disadvantaged competitors and deprived consumers for far too long. We applaud Epic Games' decision to take a stand against Apple and shed further light on Apple's abuse of its dominant position. Unsurprisingly, Spotify has sided with ‌Epic Games‌, applauding Epic's decision to 'take a stand against Apple.' From a statement provided to Recode's Peter Kafka:

Spotify, which has also faced off with Apple over Apple's App Store policies and fees, today weighed in on Epic Games' fight with Apple over Fortnite's removal from the ‌App Store‌.

Spotify vs apple music lawsuit