Epic Games CEO Slams Apple and Google as ‘Gangsters’

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney publicly labeled Apple and Google as “gangster-style” monopolies during a recent industry event, arguing that their current business practices stifle competition and demand more aggressive regulatory enforcement.

The Strategy of “Self-Preferencing”

Sweeney sharply criticized the companies for utilizing “textbook self-preferencing” tactics within their mobile ecosystems. He contends that these tech giants are effectively “getting away with” anti-competitive behavior that would otherwise be curtailed in a fair marketplace.

“Crime pays for big tech companies,” Sweeney stated, emphasizing that market dynamics are unlikely to shift until regulatory bodies implement significantly more vigorous enforcement measures against these dominant platforms.

The Financial Barrier to Competition

Addressing the state of the Epic Games Store, Sweeney highlighted that the friction and costs associated with third-party distribution on iOS remain prohibitively high. Consequently, major game developers have largely avoided distributing their titles through Epic’s platform on Apple devices.

While Apple has moved away from its standard 30% commission in certain contexts, it has introduced a “core technology fee” of 50 cents per install annually for any application surpassing 1 million downloads. According to Sweeney, this structure acts as a financial deterrent for developers.

Threat of Bankruptcy for Developers

“Unless your app is enormously high-grossing per user, any free-to-play game is largely dissuaded from that,” Sweeney explained. He warned that the current fee structure is so restrictive that “Apple would bankrupt them” if developers attempted to scale free-to-play titles through alternative stores under these conditions.

Despite these systemic hurdles, Sweeney noted that the Epic Games Store has successfully integrated a selection of back-catalog titles. He remains optimistic that the platform’s expansion to include developer submissions later this year will broaden the available library for both Android and iOS users.