Apple Hit with Order to Show Cause as It Continues Blocking Fortnite’s Return to App Store

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney shared a screenshot on X of a May 19 filing concerning an order to show cause about Apple’s continued blocking of Fortnite’s return to the App Store. In a previous filing, Epic Games pointed out that Apple did not act on Fortnite’s submission despite the iPhone maker usually reviewing 90% of app submissions within 24 hours.

The May 19 filing requests that Apple explain why it continues to block the hit battle royale game from returning to the App Store before May 21. Should the matter not be resolved by then, the court ordered Apple to send the person responsible for ensuring compliance to appear in court on May 27, 2025.

In the replies to the post, Sweeney mentioned that Apple did not accept or reject the game’s submission, but they will continue to “ignore it until after the 9th Circuit Court rules on their stay request, which would be in late May or June.” This was included in a May 16 filing urging the court to enforce its ruling on Apple.

In late April of this year, Epic won a lawsuit against Apple concerning the latter’s anticompetitive practices regarding the App Store. After the decision was finalized, Sweeney took to X and announced that Fortnite is coming back to the iOS App Store the very next week.