Apple to seek damages from Epic for breach of App Store contract

Apple will seek damages against Epic Games for breaching its contract with the iOS App Store, in a further escalation of the two companies' ongoing legal fight. The move came in a filing filed Tuesday, along with counterclaims for unfair enrichment and arbitrary interference in Apple's relationship with its customers.

"Epic's flagrant disregard for its contractual commitments and other misconduct has caused significant harm to Apple," the filing reads. "Left unchecked, Epic's conduct threatens the very existence of the iOS ecosystem and its tremendous value to consumers."

Epic Games sued Apple in August after the company's hit game Fortnite was removed from the iOS App Store for implementing an unauthorized payment system. The complaint, filed August 13, alleges that Apple is violating antitrust law, using its full control over iOS to extract a commission for all software that passes through the App Store.

Apple's filing comes in response to a sweeping motion for a preliminary injunction, filed by Epic over the weekend. Tuesday's filing sets out a series of defenses against that motion. Among other claims, Apple contends that there were legitimate business justifications for all the actions it took, which would undermine a broader antitrust claim. "At all times, [Apple's] conduct was reasonable and ... its actions were carried out in good faith to promote legitimate business interests and had the effect of promoting, encouraging and increasing competition," the complaint read. .

Apple declined to comment beyond the presentation.

A recent ruling on a temporary restraining order made it unlikely that Fortnite would return to the iOS App Store in the immediate future. The same legislation prohibited Apple from taking further action against another developer account used by Epic to support the Unreal Engine.

Epic's response to Apple's submission is due September 18, before a full hearing on September 28.