While much of the focus of the Epic lawsuit coverage has been on Apple, which was certainly helped along by that 1984 parody ad played on Fortnite, Epic Games is picking a fight on at least two fronts as the company is fighting Google too. So let’s cast our eyes in that direction for a moment, particularly since Google has issued a filing that seeks to completely dismiss Epic’s suit, pointing to the more open nature of Android as its justification.
The filing suggests Google is not in favor of merging its litigation with Apple’s, implying Google is willing to sit on the sidelines for now to see how the drama between Apple and Epic plays out.
To that point, Epic has filed a response to the legal ruling that allowed Fortnite to remain barred from iOS and Apple. This filing seeks to up the stakes of what Fortnite plans to be, hinting that Epic hopes it’ll become a form of social media:
“One of the factors that makes Fortnite so special is its groundbreaking ability to provide a forum for a wide variety of virtual social experiences such as concerts, movie nights, and social and political discussions all in a single, freely accessible world. In the future, Epic plans to offer many more events and new features in Fortnite, with the ultimate goal of creating the Fortnite Metaverse, a robust real-time, three-dimensional social medium complete with its own economy, where people will be able to create and engage in any number of shared experiences… The vitality of Fortnite as a social space will increasingly depend on access for mobile users.
“The communal experience of the Fortnite platform, the free flow of thoughts and ideas within the game’s many virtual spaces, and the game’s utility as an outlet for social connection, have led Fortnite to be considered a challenger and substitute for Facebook, Snapchat, and others.”
The filing also once more pointed to Epic’s desire to use its own payment system in the game, which it says was used by 53% of iOS users when it was made available. Apple’s response to all of this is due by September 18th, while another hearing is set for September 28th. Basically, keep that popcorn warm, friends; this ain’t quite done.
