Epic Games cites Apple's total control over iPhones at first day of trial

 Epic broke Apple's rules in August when it introduced its own in-app payment system in Fortnite to circumvent Apple's commissions. In response, Apple kicked Epic off its App Store

By Stephen Nellis

OAKLAND, Calif. (Reuters) - The chief executive of "Fortnite" creator Epic Games testified on Monday that he knew he was breaking Apple Inc's App Store rules by putting Epic's own in-app payment system into the game last year but wanted to highlight Apple's sway over the world's iPhone users, which now total 1 billion.

"I wanted the world to see that Apple exercises total control over all software on iOS, and it can use that control to deny users' access to apps," Tim Sweeney said from behind layers of plexiglass in a federal courthouse in Oakland, California, on the first day of an antitrust trial against Apple.

The trial, expected to run three weeks, brings to a head a lawsuit Epic brought last year in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California that centers on two Apple practices that have become cornerstones of its business: Apple's requirement that virtually all third-party software for the world's 1 billion iPhones be distributed through its App Store, and the requirement that developers use Apple's in-app purchase system, which charges commissions of up to 30%.

Epic broke Apple's rules in August when it introduced its own in-app payment system in "Fortnite" to circumvent Apple's commissions. In response, Apple kicked Epic off its App Store.

Epic sued Apple, alleging the iPhone maker is abusing its power over app developers with App Store review rules and payment requirements that hurt competition in the software market. Epic also launched an aggressive public relations campaign to call attention to its allegations just as Apple's practices have come under scrutiny from lawmakers and regulators in the United States and elsewhere.