美上诉法院裁决，允许苹果收取“合理”外部支付佣金

Core Viewpoint - The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has partially overturned a previous ruling against Apple in its legal dispute with Epic Games, allowing Apple to charge a "reasonable" commission on purchases made through external links in iOS apps, pending further determination by the lower court or mutual agreement between the parties [1][3]. Group 1: Legal Background - The dispute originated in 2021 when a U.S. District Court judge ordered Apple to allow app developers to provide external payment links within iOS apps to enhance market competition, prohibiting Apple from preventing developers from informing users about cheaper payment options [2]. - Apple modified its policy to allow external links but imposed a 27% commission on purchases made through these links within seven days, while the in-app purchase commission remains at 30% [2]. - Epic Games argued that the 27% commission was still too high and that developers faced additional third-party payment processing fees, which contradicted the spirit of the 2021 injunction [2]. Group 2: Court Rulings - The Ninth Circuit Court's ruling overturned the complete ban on commissions, stating that the lower court's injunction was punitive and misused discretion by prohibiting all commissions without a reasonable fee structure [3]. - The court confirmed that there was "clear and convincing evidence" of Apple's civil contempt of court, maintaining the core finding that Apple violated the 2021 injunction while allowing most of the original order requiring external payment links to remain in effect [3]. - The court specified that the "reasonable" commission rate should be based on Apple's necessary costs for managing external links, plus a "certain compensation" for the use of its intellectual property, excluding security and privacy-related costs [3]. Group 3: Implications for Epic Games - The April 2024 ruling by the lower court has cleared the way for Epic Games' popular game "Fortnite" to be re-listed on the U.S. App Store for iPhone and iPad, with Apple indicating that the app is expected to be one of the highest downloaded applications in 2025 [4]. - Both Apple and Epic Games have not commented immediately on the latest appellate ruling, and the specific standards for the "reasonable" commission rate are still pending further hearings or negotiations [5].