Anti Steering App Store Rules: Apple gets a stay on ‘anti-steering’ changes for App Store – Times of India

Apple is not required to implement changes to its “anti-steering” App Store rules, which currently prevent developers from directing customers to purchase options outside of the App Store.
Apple has been granted a motion to temporarily halt the appeals court ruling that would have required the company to remove its “anti-steering” rules, according to a report by The Verge. This stay is in effect for 90 days while Apple seeks permission from the Supreme Court to take up the case.
Since 2020, Apple and Epic Games have been in a legal battle over Apple’s ‌ App Store rules, with judges ruling in Apple’s favour that the company does not violate federal antitrust laws. However, the panel upheld the lower court’s ruling that Apple violated California’s Unfair Competition Law by preventing app developers from directing customers to alternative payment methods outside the App Store, which takes a 30% cut, asking the company to update its “anti-steering” rules.
Apple has been ordered to make changes to the ‌App Store‌ that will allow developers to direct customers to purchasing mechanisms outside of the store, using metadata, buttons, links, and other calls to action. The changes will enable developers to implement alternate payment methods, which should save them the 30% cut that Apple asks for.
In April, Apple said that it supports the court’s ruling but disagreed with the changes to the App Store. Apple is now requesting that the Supreme Court review the case. “We respectfully disagree with the court’s ruling on the one remaining claim under state law and are considering further review,” said the company in a statement.
In their request to block the stay, Epic’s lawyers argued that Apple’s claims have no prospect of Supreme Court review and that Apple has no choice but to rely on weak arguments that it previously barely mentioned.
Apple argues that changes to the App Store will upset the balance between developers and customers, resulting in harm to both Apple and consumers. Now, the company has 90 days to file with the Supreme Court. If the court hears the case, ‌App Store changes will not be required until a final ruling is made. If the court rejects the case, Apple must make the changes.