Apple’s final circle

Battle Royale: Apple vs. Fortnite

View Online Battle Royale: Apple vs. Fortnite Fortnite via YouTube In July, we wrote about Hey's battle with Apple, where Apple tried to impose a 30% App Store fee on Hey subscriptions. After an ugly PR battle, the dispute ended with Apple quietly dropping the fee requirement and approving Hey's app. Fast forward to today: Epic Games, creator of the wildly popular game Fortnite, has decided to strike hard at Apple's merchant fee. It all started when Epic added their own payment platform to Fortnite's app, encouraging users to purchase in-game currency through this platform instead of Apple's. They even went a step further, offering a discount over Apple's payment platform, which charges 30% more.  Almost immediately, Apple ejected Fortnite from the App Store for violating their policies. Epic fired back, releasing a parody of Apple's own 1984 commercial. Epic also slapped Apple with an antitrust lawsuit, alleging a slew of monopolistic practices that give them an unfair advantage.  Apple countersued, fiercely standing by its 30% fee on app payments: "Although Epic portrays itself as a modern corporate Robin Hood, in reality it is a multi-billion dollar enterprise that simply wants to pay nothing for the tremendous value it derives from the App Store." Epic's lawsuit is the latest development in a battle royale that has seen Apple face off against the likes of Spotify, Tinder, and Netflix. With antitrust complaints flying left and right in court, it's unclear how long Apple can continue charging its 30% merchant fee. But with Epic's gameplay down 60% since its app was banned from the App Store, it looks like Apple is still the one flossing all the way to the bank. View Story Hot startups hiring now 🔥 WorkWhile - How workers earn a better living and live better lives. Explore 5 jobs. Invitae - Specializing in genetic diagnostics for hereditary disorders. Explore 82 jobs. Roadtrip - An audio social network for sharing and discovering music. Explore 4 jobs. Roblox - Build and share your own multiplayer video games. Hiring game engine engineers, plus 127 other jobs. Funding and acquisitions Skin Analytics, an AI-based skin cancer screening service, raised a £4 million Series A. The company offers a medical device that is able to identify skin cancers and other lesions "to the same level as a dermatologist." The company plans to expand its focus to the United States after it was awarded a "breakthrough device designation" by the FDA. Cosmose, a startup that tracks foot traffic in brick-and-mortar stores to help predict customer behavior, announced a $15 million Series A. The company offers three main products: Cosmose Analytics, which tracks customer movement inside brick-and-mortar stores; Cosmose AI, a platform to help retailers create marketing campaigns; and Cosmose Media, for targeting online ads.  PopSQL, a collaborative SQL editor for teams, raised a $3.4 million seed round. With PopSQL, users can write a SQL query once and then easily share it across the entire company, saving the headache of sharing SQL queries via email or code snippets. Progress, a Boston-based developer tools company, acquired software automation platform Chef for $220 million. Chef, which went 100% open source last year, boasts $70 million in annual recurring revenue and is on track to become profitable. AngelList Weekly 90 Gold St San Francisco, CA 94133 Unsubscribe | Update preferences