Supreme Court Weighs Apple's Bid to Kill App Store Contempt Finding in Epic Battle

Six years in the making, one vote to decide

All nine U.S. Supreme Court justices met in private conference on June 25 to vote on whether to hear Apple Inc. v. Epic Games, Inc. (No. 25-1311) — a decision that could determine App Store commission rates and whether courts can enforce antitrust injunctions across entire digital platforms.techtimes The dispute traces to August 2020, when Epic bypassed Apple's in-app purchase system inside Fortnite, prompting Apple to remove the game and Epic to sue.9to5mac A ruling on whether to accept the case is expected before the Court's summer recess.techtimes

Contempt born from a 27% workaround

A 2021 injunction from Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers required Apple to let developers link users to external payment options.9to5mac After the Supreme Court declined to revisit that ruling in January 2024, Apple complied in name but imposed a 27% commission on purchases made through those links — a rate the district court found Apple knew would make them commercially useless.techtimes Not a single developer used the links during the compliance window.techtimes Judge Gonzalez Rogers held Apple in civil contempt on April 30, 2025, finding that a senior finance executive had "outright lied" to the court about the compliance design, and reduced Apple's external-purchase commission to zero.techtimes The Ninth Circuit upheld the contempt finding in December 2025, then sent the case back to determine a permissible rate — proceedings now paused while the Supreme Court weighs Apple's petition.techtimes

Apple's two-part legal challenge

Apple's petition, filed May 21, 2026, argues the 2021 injunction never addressed commissions and that the Ninth Circuit wrongly applied a "spirit of the order" contempt standard that conflicts with the stricter text-based standard used in the First and Seventh Circuits.techtimes +1 The petition also contends the injunction's extension to all App Store developers worldwide conflicts with the Supreme Court's 2025 ruling in Trump v. CASA, which restricts courts from granting injunctions covering parties not before the court.9to5mac Technology industry groups filed an amicus brief backing Apple, arguing the ruling placed "a global digital marketplace under judicial supervision based on a single plaintiff's claims."techtimes Epic CEO Tim Sweeney called the petition "one last Hail Mary to delay a conclusion to this case," and Epic's filings contend the 27% commission violated the express text of the injunction, not just its spirit.9to5mac

What the vote means for developers

Apple is currently charging zero commission on external purchases and says that structure remains in place while the petition is pending.techtimes If the Court grants certiorari and ultimately rules for Apple, the contempt finding is erased and the basis for limiting Apple's fees weakens significantly; if the Court declines, rate proceedings resume before Judge Gonzalez Rogers.techtimes Justice Elena Kagan rejected Apple's earlier emergency request to pause the contempt ruling in May 2026.reuters Apple also faces a parallel DOJ monopolization lawsuit, an EU antitrust investigation, and a developer class action that Proton AG joined in March 2026, alleging App Store commissions force developers to raise consumer prices.techtimes