Epic is relaunching its mobile game store. The Epic Games Store launched in August 2024, on Android worldwide, but only in the EU on iOS, thanks to the European Digital Markets Regulation (DMA) which forces Apple to open its ecosystem to competition.
By the end of 2024, Epic had 29 million downloads on both platforms. A long way from the publisher's target of 100 million, which deplores the friction imposed by Apple on alternative app stores, as well as the warnings before downloading that can scare off users. Epic estimates that more than half of users abandon the installation of its store after seeing Apple's signs.
To give the Epic Games Store a boost on smartphones, the company will integrate 19 Android games and 16 iOS games from third-party developers. Currently, there are Fortnite, Fall Guys and Rocket League SideSwipe, three Epic games. In order to encourage users to install its store, the publisher will also offer a free game each month (Bloons TD 6 and Dungeon of the Endless: Apogee will be the first). The goal is to move to a gift every week. All this should have been launched this Thursday, January 23, but a last-minute technical problem forced Epic to postpone the launch.
In order to help developers who would like to participate in this free games program, Epic is offering to pay the Core Technology Fee (CTF) required by Apple for one year; These fees apply to apps distributed outside the App Store, and amount to €0.50 per install beyond the first million. For developers with global revenues of less than €10 million, CTFs are waived for three years.
These fees are a real problem for developers interested in distributing outside the App Store, as they also apply to free games. Since Epic’s offer is limited in time (one year), it’s not certain that developers will jump at the chance — what will happen in the second year and beyond?
In any case, these CTF fees are a brake on the expansion of alternative stores in Europe. The European Commission, which is investigating Apple’s compliance with the DMA, is also interested in it.
Source: Reuters
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