Apple faces legal problems after a federal judge issued an order demanding the company to explain his refusal to comply with a court order derived from his high -profile antimonopoly dispute with epic games.
In a strongly drafted order issued on Monday, the Judge of the US District Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers directed Apple to submit to court and justify why he should not deal with sanctions for allegedly violating the 2021 ordinance that required the restrictions of App Store to third parties developers.
“Obviously, Apple is completely able to resolve this question without further information or audience,” the judge wrote on Monday.
The order, presented to the United States District Court of the Northern California district, demands that an Apple officer “personally responsible for guaranteeing compliance” to appear in the court on May 27 “if the parties do not have a joint notice that this problem is resolved …”
The order follows an epic game movement that seeks to enforce the original ordering, which ordered Apple to allow developers to include links or buttons outside their applications to facilitate alternative payment methods, passing the purchase system to the Apple application.
According to Judge Rogers, Apple has failed to honor the terms of this sentence and has continued to impose conditions on developers who diminish the court’s intention.
“This is a court order, not a negotiation,” he wrote in a separate sentence last week. “There is no exceeding once a part voluntarily ignores a court order.”
The critic of the judge extended to the CEO of Apple, Tim Cook, who said he rejected the internal recommendations to fulfill the order.
“Internally, Philip Schiller had argued that Apple was fulfilled,” Rogers wrote. “But Tim Cook ignored Schiller and allowed the financial manager Luca Maestri and his finance team to convince him to differently. Cook chose badly.”
Rogers also accused Apple’s Vice President of Finance Alex Roman, having been under an oath during the trial.
“To hide the truth … Roman … he lied directly under oath,” he wrote, adding that Apple “adopted the lies and misconceptions to this court.”
The judge’s last order gives Apple until Wednesday to file an answer explaining why the Epic’s motion should not be granted to enforce the ordinance.
Any Epic response must be sent on Friday.
If the parties do not reach a ruling and do not jointly notify the court, the Apple Officer appointed in the presentation must attend in person in the Federal Court of Oakland.
Apple earlier this month responded with a brief statement saying: “We do not agree with the decision. We will fulfill the court’s order and we will appeal.”
The dispute goes back to 2020, when Epic Games, the “Fortnite” manufacturer, sued Apple for allegedly monopolistic practices related to his App Store.
By 2021, Judge Rogers largely ruled in favor of Apple, but issued a key order that prevents the company from preventing developers from informing users of alternative payment options. This order is now in the center of the last legal storm.
According to the court, Apple devised a 27% commission fee for purchases made outside of its ecosystem, which was allegedly calculated to overcome the costs that developers could incorporate through third -party payment methods.
Roman falsely testified that Apple had not evaluated these costs, but internal documents showed the opposite.
The judge also verified that Apple had already completed his external purchase rate structure in July 2023, contradicting Roman’s jury testimony that the policy was not completed until January 2024.
The order to show the cause adds to the pressure that Apple has, as Judge Rogers has sent the matter to the United States’ law for possible accusations of criminal disdain against the company and the people involved.
Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic Games, welcomed the decision.
“It’s a huge victory for developers,” he said. “This forces Apple to compete. This is what we wanted over time.”
The next May 27 audience could be a fundamental time for Apple, as it browses to intensify control over its practices and executive behavior.
The post has sought comments to Apple and Epic Games.
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