The Epic Games Store app for EU iPhones has successfully passed Apple’s notarization process, moving the alternative app store closer to selling apps directly to iOS users outside of Apple’s App Store.
This development, confirmed by AppleInsider, comes with a caveat: Apple has requested that Epic redesign the app’s buttons in future submissions to its app review process.
Epic CEO Tim Sweeney framed Apple’s request as a demand, stating the company must change the buttons in the next version of the app. Sweeney vowed that Epic would contest this requirement, suggesting the approval is merely temporary.
Earlier, Apple reinstated Epic Games Sweden’s European developer license after EU regulators began investigating Apple’s decision to revoke it.
This development follows Epic’s submission of the store, along with Fortnite, to Apple’s iOS notarization process earlier this month. Apple requires this process for apps available outside the App Store in the EU.
Epic posted that Apple initially rejected the submission, citing concerns that the game store’s “in-app purchases” label and “Install” button too closely resembled Apple’s “Get” button and positioning for similar features.
This conflict is part of a long-standing feud between Apple and Epic that has lasted for four years. The dispute began when Epic objected to Apple’s 30 percent cut from in-app payments, leading to the removal of Fortnite from the iOS App Store. Epic eventually secured a partial legal victory, and recent legal developments in the European Union have ensured that Fortnite will soon return to iPhones in Europe.
Featured Image courtesy of ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images