Court filings show Apple and the Department of Justice have each subpoenaed a wide range of third-party companies as part of pretrial discovery in the DOJ's antitrust case against Apple. Apple's subpoenas target firms like Epic Games, Samsung, Meta, Oura, Garmin, PayPal and Match Group, while the DOJ and plaintiff states have subpoenaed Roblox, Snap, Epic and the Connectivity Standards Alliance. Recent letters to the court reveal disputes, including Epic objecting to Apple's request for documents from its prior litigation with the company.
9to5mac.com
· 2026-11-06
The U.S. Supreme Court has scheduled oral arguments in Apple's appeal of a civil contempt ruling stemming from its App Store dispute with Epic Games. The case concerns whether Apple violated the 'spirit' of a 2021 injunction requiring it to allow external payment links, after a district judge found it in contempt in April 2025 for imposing fees and restrictions on those links.
9to5mac.com
· 2026-11-03
An Xbox manager stated that generative AI is already being used in game development, aligning Microsoft with large publishers like Capcom, Square Enix, Sega, Nexon and Activision that have adopted or pledged to adopt the technology. Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney has also publicly promoted AI use, while smaller independent studios such as Finji, ConcernedApe and Strange Scaffold have resisted it. Industry surveys claiming roughly 90 percent AI adoption are noted as having limited and possibly unrepresentative sample sizes.
engadget.com
· 2026-10-31
Google has begun accepting enrollment applications from third-party Android app stores for its Registered App Stores program, with a streamlined installation flow set to launch December 1. The program, available outside the US on Android 17 QPR2 and later, is optional for developers, and stores that don't enroll will see no change to their current installation process.
androidauthority.com
· 2026-10-27
Google has begun accepting applications from third-party app stores for its Registered App Stores program, which excludes the United States. Approved stores will gain one-click app installation and silent background updates similar to Google Play, with the new install experience rolling out to Android devices later this year.
arstechnica.com
· 2026-10-27
Epic Games issued a Digital Millennium Copyright Act takedown notice this month against a browser-based Fortnite port built using AI coding tools, according to Kotaku. The move comes weeks after Bloomberg reported Epic had directed its own developers to lean more heavily on AI tools to finish a delayed Disney collaboration, a directive that reportedly unsettled staff worried about added errors.
futurism.com
· 2026-10-27
An Australian federal court has ruled against Apple, ordering it to allow third-party app stores, direct downloads, and alternative payment systems on iOS without imposing restrictive conditions or fees. Following the ruling, Epic Games announced Fortnite will return to the Australian App Store, ending its absence there since Apple had continued contested restrictions after the game relaunched elsewhere. Apple must comply by March 1, 2027, pay 85 percent of Epic's legal costs, and has said it disagrees with the findings and intends to challenge them.
engadget.com
· 2026-10-22
A Federal Court of Australia judge ruled that Apple must let iPhone users with Australian Apple Accounts download apps from alternative app stores and websites starting March 1, 2027, with a possible extension to May 3, 2027. The 235-page decision follows an earlier finding that Apple breached Australian competition law through App Store restrictions, in a case brought by Epic Games. Apple has said it will appeal.
9to5mac.com
· 2026-10-22
Samsung Galaxy phones running One UI 6.1.1 or later come with Auto Blocker enabled automatically, a feature that filters risky apps, USB commands and messages in the background. It blocks sideloaded apps and installs from outside the Google Play Store or Samsung Galaxy Store unless users manually adjust the setting. Epic Games previously sued Samsung, arguing the feature made installing third-party apps like its own store unnecessarily difficult.
engadget.com
· 2026-10-17
The Information reports that Apple and the Justice Department are continuing settlement negotiations in the 2024 antitrust lawsuit, with discussions reportedly centered on iPhone interoperability requirements. PayPal and Epic Games are among the developers who have told DOJ officials they fear any resulting deal could impose only minimal restrictions on Apple's practices.
9to5mac.com
· 2026-10-16
Epic Games is building a new version of its Easy Anti-Cheat system for Linux, called EAC Linux V2, designed to match the capabilities of the Windows version. It relies on existing Linux security features like Secure Boot, TPM 2.0 and Kernel Lockdown rather than a kernel driver, and runs as a systemd service only while a protected game is active. Distros including Ubuntu, Linux Mint, Fedora, Bazzite and Debian already have recognized signing keys, meaning users on those systems could play protected titles if their hardware meets the other requirements.
tomshardware.com
· 2026-10-16
A day after Epic Games launched a preview of its new 'vibe-coded' launcher touting faster load times than Steam, Valve shipped a small Steam update that cut cold-boot time to about 5.23 seconds, edging out Epic's roughly 5.47 seconds. Epic's launcher still posts a slightly quicker tray-restore time, but Steam now leads on the core startup metric Epic had used to market its new client.
respawnfirst.com
· 2026-10-15
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