All the way back in 2020, Apple removed Fortnite from its iOS app store following Epic’s inclusion of an alternative in-app payment system. This of course led to years of legal back and forths, with Fortnite finally returning to Apple devices last month. It seems as though all the trouble Epic went through might have been worth it, with millions of iPhone users flocking back to the game.
In an interview (conducted by The Verge) with Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney, it was revealed that in the time since Fortnite was re-added back to the iOS App Store on the 20th of May, the game has already amassed 10 million downloads.
Far more interesting however is the revelation that 40% of these 10 million users have opted for Epic’s own in-app payment system over Apple’s. Considering the fact that the entire legal battle between Epic and Apple surrounded these payment systems, it is likely a relief for them to see the system actually being used. Of course, the added incentives which Epic gives you for using their payment system likely helped out.
That said, Sweeney appears to have greater ambitions still, telling The Verge: “As we get more players to associate payment methods with their Epic accounts, we’ll see a higher rate of adoption, and I would hope that it would be above 50 percent.”
While ultimately the legal battle bottled down to a Trillion Dollar and a Multi-Billion Dollar company wanting to make more billions, the results are interesting to see nonetheless.
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KitGuru says: Are you one of the 10 million new Fortnite players on iOS? How do you think the ratio between Epic and Apple’s services will shake out in the long-term? Let us know down below.