U.S. Supreme Court clears path for App Store commission showdown as Apple must defend its rates in lower court

In a significant development in the long-running legal battle between Apple and Epic Games, the U.S. Supreme Court has rejected Apple's bid to pause proceedings over the commissions it charges developers for sales made outside the App Store. Justice Elena Kagan on Thursday denied Apple's request for a stay, allowing the lower court to move forward with determining a permissible commission rate while the high court considers a related appeal.

The decision supersedes a temporary pause Kagan had imposed the day before, clearing the way for U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers to oversee the rate-setting process. This stems from earlier findings that Apple violated an injunction by imposing restrictive rules and a 27% commission on external "link-out" purchases — transactions where users are directed from an iOS app to complete a purchase on the web or elsewhere.

Apple has been charging zero commission on these external purchases in the U.S. since the contempt ruling, a status that remains in place for now. The Supreme Court has agreed to review the contempt finding itself (with arguments expected in the October 2026 term), but that review will not halt the parallel rate proceedings.

Following the Supreme Court's order, Apple submitted its proposal for commissions on linked-out purchases: 15% for standard apps (those subject to the usual 30% in-app purchase fee); 10% for participants in programs like Video Partner, News Partner, and Mini Apps, as well as subscription renewals; 5% for Small Business Program apps.

MacDailyNews Take: The whole thing is ludicrous. Again, it's Apple's App Store, not Epic's. Apple has a right to charge developers for use of its App Store.

Apple's commission (reduced to 15% for most app developers) has always funded the secure infrastructure, rigorous app review process, fraud protection, payment systems, and ongoing platform development that benefit users and honest developers. Epic wanted all the upside of that ecosystem with none of the contribution.

The bottom line is clear: Epic Games wants to enjoy all of the benefits of Apple's App Store, including access to well over one billion of the world's most affluent users for free. That is illogical, unfair, and, basically, theft. – MacDailyNews, May 4, 2021.

Published 2026-08-14T19:30:30+00:00.