Apple’s emergency attempt to pause a court-ordered App Store overhaul has been rejected, forcing the company to comply with new developer-friendly rules amid its ongoing legal fight with Epic Games.
Apple Must Comply With Allowing External Payment Links in App Store as Ordered by Court Earlier
Apple has suffered another legal blow in its high-stakes fight with Epic Games. The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has denied Apple’s emergency request to pause the enforcement of a previous court ruling by Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, which demands that the company ease its App Store restrictions, particularly around alternative payment options for developers.
This means Apple must continue to follow the new guidelines that allow developers more freedom in how they link users to external purchasing systems, despite Apple’s objections.
What This Means for the App Store and Developers
In practical terms, Apple now has to:
- Allow developers to guide users to external payment options outside of the App Store. This is something Apple is already complying with, albeit unwillingly.
- Drop the 27% commission fee imposed on these out-of-app transactions.
Apple had argued that this ruling unfairly interfered with how it manages its business operations and its App Store’s structure. But the appeals court disagreed and upheld the lower court’s decision, at least for now.
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Epic Games’ Tim Sweeney is obviously delighted with the decision and excited about the announcement coming in at Apple’s WWDC 2025 event.
Apple Responds, But Developers Move Forward
Apple issued a statement via 9to5Mac, expressing its disappointment:
We are disappointed with the decision not to stay the district court’s order, and we’ll continue to argue our case during the appeals process. As we’ve said before, we strongly disagree with the district court’s opinion. Our goal is to ensure the App Store remains an incredible opportunity for developers and a safe and trusted experience for our users.
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Despite Apple’s intention to continue appealing the decision, developers are now legally allowed to steer users toward alternative payment methods without heavy restrictions, something Epic Games has fought for since its battle with Apple began in 2020.
With WWDC around the corner, and increasing pressure from regulators worldwide, this decision could have wide-ranging implications for how Apple runs its App Store globally.
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