Apple Can Keep App Store Rules for Now as Top Court Spurns Epic

The US Supreme Court let Apple Inc. keep its App Store payment rules in place for the time being, rejecting an Epic Games Inc. request that would have let developers start directing iPhone users to other purchasing options.

Justice Elena Kagan said she wouldn’t let a federal appeals court decision take effect immediately, as Epic had sought. The 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals said earlier this year that Apple violated California’s Unfair Competition Law by limiting the ability of developers to communicate about alternative payment systems, including purchases through the Epic Games Store.

Kagan, who gave no explanation, is the justice assigned to handle emergency matters from the San Francisco-based 9th Circuit.

Kagan’s rejection of Epic means Apple will get a reprieve from the 9th Circuit ruling, though perhaps only a temporary one. The appeals court put its decision on hold to give Apple time to file a Supreme Court appeal later this year, but the ruling will kick in if the justices refuse to hear the case.

Epic, maker of the popular Fortnite game, said the 9th Circuit used the wrong legal standard in putting its ruling on hold.

In urging the Supreme Court to keep the 9th Circuit ruling on hold, Apple said Epic isn’t being affected by the disputed policy. Apple expelled Fortnite from the App Store because Epic created a workaround to avoid paying a 30% fee on customers’ in-app purchases. Epic says its subsidiaries still have apps in the App Store.