Federal Judge Hits Apple Exec With Criminal Referral Over ‘Obvious Lies’

Five years ago, Epic Games, the maker of Fortnite, filed an antitrust lawsuit against Apple for its in-app purchase policies. Since then, things mostly haven’t worked out in Epic’s favor. But this week, a federal judge rebuked Apple for “willfully violating” an earlier injunction. Coupled with claims that a top Apple executive lied under oath and a referral for criminal contempt, Epic may have secured a major victory for developers.

Epic’s lawsuit stems from its intentionally violating App Store policies by offering mobile users a direct payment option for in-game purchases. This circumvented Apple’s 30% commission on in-App Store purchases. In response, Apple (and Google, who Epic also sued) removed Fortnite from mobile stores. And thus, Epic formally launched Project Liberty to dismantle Apple’s monopoly on mobile gaming.

But in 2021, United States District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Roger largely ruled in Apple’s favor and even ordered Epic to pay Apple lost revenue. However, she did rule that Apple needed to let developers use and notify people in-app of alternative payment options. That is at the center of Gonzalez Rogers’ Wednesday ruling coming down on Apple’s “willful violation” of court orders.

According to Gonzalez Rogers, Apple “continued its anticompetitive conduct” after it couldn’t get the Supreme Court to strike down her injunction. Chief amongst complaints is that Apple imposed a new 27% fee on developers for purchases outside of the App Store. That’s alongside its pre-existing 30% commission for in-App Store purchases.

“Apple sought to maintain a revenue stream worth billions in direct defiance of this court’s injunction,” Gonzalez Rogers wrote. She also stated that Apple “knew exactly what it was doing and at every turn chose the most anticompetitive option.” (Emphasis her own.)

Online, Epic’s Chief Executive Tim Sweeney celebrated the win, tweeting, “Apple’s 15030% junk fees are now just as dead here in [the US] as they are in Europe…Unlawful here, unlawful there.”

NO FEES on web transactions. Game over for the Apple Tax.

Apple’s 15-30% junk fees are now just as dead here in the United States of America as they are in Europe under the Digital Markets Act. Unlawful here, unlawful there.

4 years 4 months 17 days. https://t.co/RucrsX7Z4A pic.twitter.com/3kSYnt5pcI

— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) April 30, 2025

In addition to its new commission, Apple tried to dissuade customers from using alternative payment methods at all. Per the New York Times, CEO Tim Cook requested that customers receive a “scare” screen saying “Apple’s privacy and security standards do not apply to purchases made on the web.” While executive Phillip Schiller tried to get Apple to comply with the court, Tim Cook ignored his advice. Gonzalez Rogers wrote, “Cook chose poorly.”

Gonzalez Rogers also stated that Apple’s vice president of finance, Alex Roman, “outright lied” at a May 2024 hearing. During it, Apple tried to “mislead the Court” regarding its decision to introduce a new commission. When asked, Roman testified that Apple hadn’t decided the fee until January 16, 2024, but documents show that it was decided in July 2023.

“Neither Apple, nor its counsel, corrected the, now, obvious lies,” Gonzalez Rogers wrote. “They did not seek to withdraw the testimony or have it stricken.” She has referred the matter to U.S. District Attorneys to determine if both Roman and Apple should face criminal proceedings.

On X, Sweeney extended Apple a peace proposal. He wrote, “If Apple extends the court’s friction-free, Apple-tax-free framework worldwide, we’ll return Fortnite to the App Store worldwide and drop current and future litigation on the topic.”

Apple did not respond to Gizmodo’s request for comment. It has not issued an official statement regarding the next steps. However, Gonzalez made it clear that this is “not a negotiation.”

“There are no do-overs once a party willfully disregards a court order,” she wrote. “Time is of the essence. The Court will not tolerate further delays.”