Apple Won't Have To Make the App Store Changes Ordered in Epic Ruling While Case is Appealed

Apple will not have to implement changes to its in-app purchase system and App Store guidelines as ordered by the judge's ruling in its court battle with Epic Games. From a report: While Apple largely won that case, as the court ruled Apple was not acting as a monopolist, the company had been ordered to stop preventing app developers from adding links that pointed users to other means of paying for their in-app purchases outside the App Store. Both Apple and Epic appealed the original ruling -- Epic because it was not successful with its larger claims, and Apple because it disagreed with this aspect of the ruling over in-app purchases. Apple originally had until Dec. 9 to update its App Store policies, but had asked the court for a stay on the injunction regarding the changes to its in-app purchasing guidelines until the appeal was decided.

The appeals court has now granted Apple more time before the injunction goes into effect. That means developers will have to continue to use the existing in-app purchase system Apple provides. They won't be allowed to link to or steer users to their own websites for payments from inside their apps. In a document filed today in the U.S Court of Appels for the Ninth Circuit, the court decided Apple had demonstrated 'at minimum, that its appeal raises serious questions on the merits of the district court's determination that Epic Games failed to show Apple's conduct violated any antitrust laws but did show that the same conduct violated California's Unfair Competition Law.'

Read more of this story at Slashdot.