Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney didn’t mince words at a recent Y Combinator event, branding Apple and Google as “gangster-style businesses” engaged in illegal activities.
Sweeney, whose company is behind Fortnite and Unreal Engine, emphasized that these practices directly impact Epic Games, discouraging users from installing the Epic Games Store and deterring developers from joining its platform.
Epic Games has been a major player in challenging big tech monopolies, suing both Apple and Google over monopolistic practices in their app stores. Epic secured a victory against Google, but not against Apple. The court mandated that Apple allow developers to link to alternative purchasing methods outside of Apple’s system, intending to foster greater competition. However, Epic remains in a legal battle with Apple, alleging non-compliance with the court order regarding payment processing.
Sweeney stated, “The sad truth is that Apple and Google are no longer good faith, law-abiding companies. They’re run, in many ways, as gangster-style businesses that will do anything they think they can get away with. If they think that the fine is going to be cheaper than the lost revenue from an illegal practice, they always continue the illegal practice and pay the fine.”
Sweeney highlighted that Google warns Android users that the Epic Games Store is from an “unknown source” and may harm their device, leading to a 50-60% abandonment rate during installation.
A similar drop-off rate occurs on iOS in Europe: Apple displays a warning to users attempting to install the Epic Games Store, which leads to drop-off rates of 50-60%, Sweeney noted.
Sweeney described these warning screens as “textbook self-preferencing,” claiming that big tech companies are “getting away with it.”
He added, “Crime pays for big tech companies. Obviously, we shouldn’t expect that to change until enforcement becomes much, much more vigorous.”
The “Fortnite” exec noted that the friction and high fees from third-party iOS app stores have prevented major game developers from distributing games via the Epic Game Store. Instead of the usual 30% fee, Apple collects a “core technology fee” of 50 cents per install per year for apps exceeding 1 million downloads.
Sweeney explained, “Unless your app is enormously high grossing per user, any free-to-play game is largely dissuaded from that. It’s too expensive for them. Apple would bankrupt them if they did that.”
Sweeney noted that the Epic Games Store on iOS has managed to attract some back-catalog games. He hopes that the Android version, scheduled to open to developer submissions later this year, will further expand the catalog.
