As Fortnite creator Epic Games continues its fight with Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) over its App Store policies, the company has joined forces with a handful of other companies who also have a history of fighting the same fight against Apple.
Epic, along with twelve other app publishers, formed the Coalition for App Fairness to "create a level playing field for app businesses and give people freedom of choice on their devices."
Among those who have joined are Spotify (NYSE:SPOT), who filed an antitrust complaint against Apple with the European Union for its App Store policies. Interface (NASDAQ:TILE), which has also joined the coalition, testified to Congress earlier this year regarding Apple, with its vice president and general counsel saying:
"Apple is acting as a gatekeeper to applications and technologies in a way that favors its own interests."
The coalistion's site reads:
"One company has near total control over the mobile ecosystem and what apps consumers get to use."
"After nearly a decade with no oversight, regulation, or fair competition, it’s time for Apple to be held accountable."
The coalition is pushing for freedom of choice and fair competition across the app ecosystem. The coalition details how Apple's 30% tax on most app purchases in its App Store amounts to more than $15 billion in annual revenue from its app tax.
The coalition lists 10 "App Store Principles" that it believes should be adhered to throughout the industry. Among them are no developer should be required to use an app store exclusively, no developer should be blocked from the platform and a developer's data should not be used to compete with the developer.
"Developer freedoms are under attack. We are joining @AppFairness to defend and reclaim the fundamental rights of all creators," Epic tweeted.
As Epic and other app developers rally together to take on Apple, it will be interesting to watch how Apple responds as these companies collectively remain an important source of revenue.