Judge declares 30% tax on NFT purchases through the Apple store unlawful
The federal appellate court has affirmed Apple’s victory in a suit filed by Epic Games but declared the 30% tax imposed on iOS NFT purchases illegal, opening room for developers to dodge Apple’s tax. The declaration could positively impact the crypto world.
Apple’s policies challenged
The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeal delivered a momentous ruling on a case biting Apple and Epic Games, rendering the 30% tax imposed on NFT transactions illegal. Fortnite video game creator Epic Games had urged the court to find Apple’s policies on the trade of NFTs in the App Store anti-competitive.
The court answered Epic Games’ prayers and declared Apple’s policy to deter other external payment systems contravened California’s Unfair Competition Law. The presiding judge indicated that the policy imposed by Apple stalled competition leading to muffling advancements in the NFT space.
Epic Games had accused Apple of monopoly in the market of mobile gaming. Apple prevailed in 2021 when the lower courts found it was not in contravention of monopoly rules, a decision which the court of appeal agreed with.
However, Apple’s victory came with admonition when the judge indicated that the barriers imposed towards denying customers the use of alternative payment systems were hindering fair competition.
Importance of Epic Games’ ruling
Although it was just the only win for Epic Games, the verdict is a historic win for the crypto world. Its implementation could cause the costs of transferring NFTs to decrease and increase market competition levels. Developers could find it easier to create and mint NFTs using iOS devices.
In a tweet, Epic Games originator and CEO Tim Sweeney said he was happy about the one win the company managed from the case. He indicated that the company was working on the best steps to enable iOS developers to refer their clients to the web for smooth business.
It might be early to celebrate as Apple, through a statement to Bloomberg, indicated willingness to appeal the verdict, making future outcomes inexact. Presently, the decision could significantly raise the prospects of the NFT market as lifting the restrictions could allow the use of cryptocurrency on transactions related to apps in Apple.
