• News
• Modojo @ Shacknews

Fortnite is returning to iOS in EU markets in 2024 under DMA rules

The game will be republished in Apple's mobile ecosystem with Epic Games as the publisher under EU's recently passed Digital Markets Act.

TJ Denzer

January 25, 2024 1:33 PM

Image via Fortnite

1

Epic Games has announced that with the aid of the Digital Markets Act, Fortnite is returning to iOS availability in Europe via a new Epic Games Store app in the App Store. One of the cruxes of Apple and Epic Games’ legal beef back in 2020 was that Fortnite pushed a side option for payments in Fortnite, which was blatantly against Apple’s App Store rules and forced Apple to remove Fortnite from availability on its iOS ecosystem. However, the European Union’s recent passage of the Digital Markets Act is tying Apple’s hands when it comes to keeping Fortnite off the iOS market, at least in Europe.

Epic Games announced Fortnite’s return to iOS in Europe via the Fortnite Twitter this week. According to the announcement, Fortnite will land back on iOS and be available through a new Epic Games Store app starting sometime this year in Europe.

“Later this year Fortnite will return in Europe on iOS through the Epic Games Store,” the Fortnite account wrote. “Shout out DMA - an important new law in the EU making this possible. Apple, the world is watching.”

Epic Games is almost certainly attempting to goad Apple into further action against it, as was the case when Epic Games put a payment system in Fortnite which goaded Apple into banning it in the first place. However, the rules that have put the wind in Epic’s sails were the European Commission’s Digital Markets Act, which was finalized in March 2022.

“From now on, Big Tech companies must show that they also allow for fair competition on the internet,” European Parliament member Andreas Schwab said of the new rules.

It seems the EU is standing by its promise in a big way in the matter of Apple and Epic Games, but Epic also seems convinced that Apple will find a loophole to do hard to Fortnite’s return. As we wait to see how this matter plays out, stay tuned for further updates here at Shacknews.

TJ Denzer

Senior News Editor

TJ Denzer is a player and writer with a passion for games that has dominated a lifetime. He found his way to the Shacknews roster in late 2019 and has worked his way to Senior News Editor since. Between news coverage, he also aides notably in livestream projects like the indie game-focused Indie-licious, the Shacknews Stimulus Games, and the Shacknews Dump. You can reach him at tj.denzer@shacknews.com and also find him on Twitter @JohnnyChugs.