Apple has suffered a major setback in its effort to negate a punishing App Store ruling in its lengthy legal battle with Epic Games.
CNBC reported that on Wednesday, a panel of judges at the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit denied Apple’s emergency application to halt changes to its App Store that resulted from the company’s legal battle with Epic Games.
The ruling means that Apple can no longer charge a commission on payment links inside apps, nor can Apple tell developers how the links should look.
Appeal rejected
“Apple’s Emergency Motion Under Circuit Rule 27-3 for a Partial Stay Pending Appeal is DENIED,” states the court ruling.
Apple “bears the burden of showing that the circumstances justify an exercise of [our] discretion,” according to the order. “After reviewing the relevant factors, we are not persuaded that a stay is appropriate,” the ruling states.
Epic Games had sued Apple in 2020, in an effort to force Apple to allow third-party payment systems, as well as to allow third-party app stores on its devices.
Epic was fighting to be allowed to make sales to players of its iOS games without paying a roughly 30 percent commission to Apple.
When the case came to court, Apple won the vast majority of counts in the original trial. That said however, Epic Games did win some concessions.
In September 2021 Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers had ordered Apple to make major changes to its App Store – for the first time allowing developers to send their users to alternative payment systems.
The judge also found in 2021 that Apple had violated California’s unfair competition law by barring developers from “steering” users to make digital purchases that bypass Apple’s in-app system, which Epic argued could save them money with lower commissions.
The judge at the time had therefore ordered that Apple to allow third-party developers to provide links and buttons that direct consumers to other ways to pay for digital content that they use in their apps, bypassing Apple’s own payment system and the Apple commission.
“Wilful violation”
More appeals and court cases took place, but then in late April 2025 there was a stunning development when Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that Apple had wilfully violated the 2021 injunction.
The judge also wrote that Apple VP of Finance Alex Roman “outright lied” to the court.
The judge then referred Apple to federal prosecutors for criminal contempt investigation.
Shortly after that Apple had asked an Appeal Court to temporarily pause key provisions in a US judge’s “extraordinary” ruling for the firm to comply with a previous court order.
Last month Apple finally allowed Epic Games’ Fortnite to return to its App Store in the US, after a five year absence.
Nightmare ended?
And now CNBC has reported the ruling has already shifted the economics of app development in the United States.
It noted that developers including Amazon and Spotify have been able to update their apps to avoid Apple’s 15 to 30 percent commission, and is now directing customers to their own websites for payment.
Amazon’s iPhone Kindle app now shows an orange “Get Book” button that links to Amazon.com, CNBC reported.
“Apple’s stay is denied by the 9th Circuit Court. The long national nightmare of the Apple tax is ended,” Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney tweeted on X (formerly Twitter). “May next week’s WWDC be the Apple-led celebration of freedom that developers and users have long deserved.
Apple’s stay is denied by the 9th Circuit Court. The long national nightmare of the Apple tax is ended.
May next week’s WWDC be the Apple-led celebration of freedom that developers and users have long deserved. pic.twitter.com/f0A3IAVKNC
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) June 4, 2025