Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney manufactures Fortnite and tools for other developers, including Unreal Engine, calling Apple and Google “Gangster-style business” and is engaged in illegal practices while speaking at the Y-combinator event on Wednesday. The executive also highlighted that the practices of large tech companies had a direct impact on their business by scaring users from installing Epic's game store software and preventing Epic from offering developers.
In particular, Epic Games has played a major role in the fight against the Big Tech monopoly over the past few years.
The company sued both Apple and Google.
For exclusive practice through each app store. Epic won that case on Google, but not on Apple. However, the court had requested that Apple open up to more competition by enforcing changes to the Apps Store rules. The court said app developers should be able to link to other Apple purchasing mechanisms. (Unfortunately, for APP developers, Epic is still fighting Apple in court over the changes, as Apple claims it violates the court's order by allowing developers to process their payments, but it's not just a 3% reduction in fees.
On stage, Sweeney once again called out the big tech companies for “malicious compliance” to their practices and court decisions.
“The sad truth is that Apple and Google are no longer law-abiding companies and are no longer honest,” Sweeney said. “They run in many ways as gang-style businesses that do whatever they think they can get away with. If they think the fines are cheaper than lost revenue from illegal practices, they are always continuing to illegal practices and paying fines.”
The game executive pointed out how high-tech company practices hurt his business.
For example, when Android users try to install the Epic Games store on their smartphones, Google warns that the software is from “unknown sources” and can cause harm to the device. As Sweeney calls it, this “scary screen” is intended to warn users about the dangers of installing non-play store apps. However, he says the screen results in 50-60% of users who abandoned the software installation.
A similar drop-off rate can be found on iOS. In Europe, the Epic Games store is allowed thanks to new regulations, but Apple warns users who try to install it. Again, this leads to a 50-60% drop rate, Sweeney said.
He calls the use of these screens “textbook self-presentation,” and points out that companies are “escape from it.”
“Crime is paid to the big tech companies,” he said. “Obviously, we shouldn't expect that to change until enforcement becomes much more active,” he told the audience.
Additionally, Fortnite executives said there are no major game developers willing to distribute games through the epic game store due to friction with iOS's third-party app stores and related fees. Apple cuts the fees instead of the usual 30% fee, but apps with over 1 million downloads collect 50 cents of “core technology fees” per year and 50 cents of “core technology fees” per installation.
“The games that you can play for free are then primarily compassionate unless the app is very high gross per user,” explained Sweeney. “It's too expensive for them. If Apple does that, they'll make them bankrupt.”
He noted that iOS's epic game store was able to attract several back catalog games. Meanwhile, the store will be open to developer submissions later this year. Sweeney hopes to further enhance the catalog on both Android and iOS.