It wasn't long ago that Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney had to announce a significant reduction in the company's workforce, firing 16% of the employees (around 830 in total). The news caught everyone by surprise, as the company's pockets had been filled by loads of revenue generated by Fortnite as well as the increasingly successful Unreal Engine licensing program.
The Epic Games CEO explained in short order that some parts of the company had become disconnected from their own revenue sources, and when the proverbial golden goose couldn't quite cover for them anymore, there was no recourse but to reduce the personnel. Of course, Epic had also been investing a lot in its legal fights as well as its Epic Games Store promotions to lure both users and game developers.
Still, despite this setback, Tim Sweeney redoubled on all of the aforementioned company's core initiatives, not budging an inch from his vision. Just a few weeks later, the future looks a lot brighter for Epic Games.
First of all, Fortnite broke new player count records thanks to the 'OG' season, with over 100 million players logged into the game in November. That seems to be just the tip of the iceberg, as the recent release of Chapter 5 Season 1 and the newly launched Lego Fortnite, Rocket Racing, and Fortnite Festival experiences are causing more player count peaks.
But the biggest win for the Epic Games CEO came a few hours ago when a jury in the US Federal Court of the Northern District of California ruled unanimously against Google's monopolistic practices. Tim Sweeney had long decried both Apple and Google's stranglehold on the Android and iOS environments, not to mention their outrageous 30% fees for any and all purchases made in their stores, launching massive lawsuits against the tech giants around three years ago.
As you may recall, Epic Games actually sued Apple first for unlawful monopoly. That ruling issued in September 2021 went in Apple's favor on nine out of ten counts (except for the anti-steering policies), but Tim Sweeney isn't done fighting.
Thanks! On to Cupertino.
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) December 12, 2023
After this win against Google, he received congratulations from Elon Musk himself and replied 'on to Cupertino'. He also reminded another Twitter user that Epic has appealed that ruling and is waiting to hear back from the Supreme Court.
Apple appeal is in the queue for the Supreme Court of the United States to consider hearing.
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) December 12, 2023
The Epic Games founder and largest stakeholder also commented on the possibility of joining Microsoft in its bid for an alternate store on mobile platforms. He said he'd rather compete and promised to bring Fortnite to any store (including Steam or Microsoft Store) that offered an 'awesome deal' other than the regular 30% fee.
We’ll compete, and we’ll also put Fortnite on any serious store that gives all developers an awesome deal. Steam, Microsoft, OneStore, anyone: give all developers an awesome deal and we’ll support you. The end of these ridiculous 30% fees is near. pic.twitter.com/0sxTYJdkP4
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) December 12, 2023
Needless to say, countless developers are hoping Epic Games succeeds in its bid to force platform holders like Valve, Google, and Apple to reduce their store fees. The road seems to be paved after the EU's Digital Markets Act and this landmark ruling against Google (although in the latter case the remedies still have to be hashed out by the court).
About the author: With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief. In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech's gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews. Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications. His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
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