Mid-morning, Epic Games' CEO Tim Sweeney took the stand to give testimony. The statements of both Apple and Epic reflect arguments both have made for months in the run-up to the trial. Dunn also stated on behalf of Apple that other ecosystems including Sony's PlayStation, Nintendo, and Microsoft would also fail if Epic prevailed in its trial.Īpple also stated "Epic wants us to be Android, but we don't want to be". In a fairly hard-hitting statement Karen Dunn said "Rather than investing in innovation, Epic invested in lawyers, PR and policy consultants all in an effort to get all of the benefits Apple provides for free", further stating that its 30% cut was an industry-standard set by Steam in 2003. In response, counsel for Apple stated that Epic Games was in court "demanding" the court force Apple to let Epic Games into its App Store, but that its "unwavering commitment to safety, security, reliability, and quality does not allow that" and that antitrust laws don't require it. She further stated consoles were not substitutes for the iPhone, as they (mostly) weren't portable, need Wi-Fi, and need an electrical outlet. In her opening statement, Forrest touched on this saying that without iOS the iPhone "is glass and metal and nothing else". Apple will argue that it competes with Android for control of the mobile operating system space, as well as with other gaming platforms like PlayStation and Xbox, Nintendo Switch, and more. Epic Games argues (and will argue throughout the trial) that iPhone and the iOS ecosystem is in itself a market and as such that Apple has 100 percent monopoly control over that market. Epic Games says it does know, and that Apple's App Store profit margins were about 75 percent in 2018 and about 77.8 percent in 2019, figures which will be scrutinized both inside and outside the court:Īnother big issue at stake is the definition of the market. One point of contention we got an early glimpse of is the App Store's profitability, Apple says it does not know how much money it makes from its App Store, and that it doesn't track this specific metric. She also talked about how Apple had created a "walled garden" that Epic simply wanted access to in order to provide innovation, lower prices, and better customer service. Forrest talked at length about the iOS App Store and Apple's mobile ecosystem, stating that Apple seeks to lock in users and stop them from switching away from the Apple ecosystem, and that a 30 percent tax was imposed on users every time they made an in-app purchase. Epic Games gave its opening statement first, with attorney Katherine Forrest laying out the basis for Epic's beef with Apple.
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