The following news caused quite a stir among the kids in my neighborhood last night...
Fortnite maker Epic Games has filed antitrust lawsuits against Apple and Google after the companies removed the popular game from their app stores on Thursday. According to Reuters, Apple and Google say they removed the app due to a direct payment feature that Fortnite rolled out earlier that day. The companies say direct payments are a violation of their policies. Epic Games' lawsuit seeks no money from Apple and Google, but instead aims for injunctions to stop the companies' practices related to their app stores. Apple takes a cut of 15-30 percent for most app subscriptions and in-app payments. “Apple has become what it once railed against: the behemoth seeking to control markets, block competition, and stifle innovation. Apple is bigger, more powerful, more entrenched, and more pernicious than the monopolists of yesteryear,” Epic said in its lawsuit. Epic also started a #FreeFortnite campaign on social media and created a spoof of Apple's famous "1984" ad.