Apple hit with app developer class action after US judge’s contempt ruling

By Mike Scarcella

May 5 (Reuters) - Apple should return hundreds of millions of dollars to developers who claim the iPhone maker defied a U.S. judge’s order governing its lucrative App Store, causing them to pay inflated commissions for more than a year, a new lawsuit said.

App developer Pure Sweat Basketball filed the proposed class action on Friday in the Oakland, California, federal court, after a judge ruled last week that Apple defied her order in a lawsuit brought by “Fortnite” maker Epic Games.

The 2021 injunction in that lawsuit was supposed to give developers more freedom to steer consumers outside Apple’s App Store for potentially cheaper purchases. Pure Sweat’s lawsuit was filed on behalf of as many as 100,000 developers.

The lawsuit estimated that Apple's conduct cost them "hundreds of millions or even billions" of dollars in damages.

“Apple should be made to disgorge its wrongful profit, and developers are entitled to be made whole,” the complaint said.

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In a statement, Steve Berman, a lead attorney for Pure Sweat, said they were focused on “obtaining justice” against Apple.

The lawsuit follows U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers’ April 30 ruling that said Apple willfully violated her injunction in the Epic Games case, including by charging developers a new 27% fee when Apple customers complete an app purchase outside the App Store. The injunction became effective in January 2024.

Gonzalez Rogers referred Apple and one of its executives to federal prosecutors for a possible criminal contempt investigation.

Apple denied violating Rogers’ order, and the company on Monday filed its notice of appeal.

Pure Sweat said Apple blocked the developer in 2023 from publishing an app for education videos and workouts that contained links to purchase content outside of the app.

“Apple schemed to maintain the status quo, as if no Injunction had entered, retaining its billion dollar in-app payments revenue stream while depriving developers of the intended fruits of the Injunction,” the lawsuit said.

Apple faces other consumer and government lawsuits challenging its business practices. In one such case, Hagens Berman is representing consumers accusing Apple of illegally monopolizing the smartphone market.

The case is Pure Sweat Basketball Inc v. Apple Inc, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, No. 4:25-cv-03858.

For plaintiff: Steve Berman of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro; and Eamon Kelly of Sperling Kenny Nachwalter

For Apple: No appearance yet

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