Apple petitions U.S. Supreme Court over Epic contempt and App Store injunction scope

Apple has petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review two pivotal rulings from its long-running legal battle with Epic Games, escalating a dispute that could reshape the rules for the App Store. The petition, filed Thursday, asks the justices to overturn a lower court’s finding that Apple was in civil contempt and to narrow the scope of a court order affecting all U.S. App Store developers.

The conflict began in 2020 when Epic Games, maker of Fortnite, sued Apple on antitrust grounds, challenging its control over in-app payments and app distribution. While Apple largely prevailed in the initial 2021 ruling, U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers issued an injunction requiring Apple to let developers include links directing users to alternative payment methods outside the App Store.

Apple complied but instituted a new commission of 27% on purchases made through those external links within seven days of a user clicking. Epic argued this fee structure violated the injunction’s intent, as it left developers with little financial benefit after also paying third-party payment processors. In April 2025, Judge Gonzalez Rogers found Apple in civil contempt for willfully violating the...