Judge finds Apple executive lied under oath about violating order, refers company for prosecution

A federal judge in California on Wednesday ruled that Apple lied under oath and violated an injunction she ordered in the case, which was related to an antitrust lawsuit brought by "Fortnite" creator Epic Games.

U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers said the company violated her 2021 order to allow greater competition for app downloads and payment methods in its popular app store. 

Gonzalez Rogers previously found the company broke a California law by stifling competition and overcharging other companies for in-app purchases, CNN reported. Epic Games told the judge in March 2024 that Apple was violating her order by charging a new 27% commission fee for app purchases made outside the App Store.

“In stark contrast to Apple’s initial in-court testimony, contemporaneous business documents reveal that Apple knew exactly what it was doing and at every turn chose the most anticompetitive option,” the judge wrote in her 80-page ruling. “To hide the truth, Vice-President of Finance, Alex Roman, outright lied under oath.”

"Apple’s continued attempts to interfere with competition will not be tolerated,” Gonzalez Rogers also noted. “This is an injunction, not a negotiation. There are no do-overs once a party willfully disregards a court order.”

The judge said she is referring Roman and Apple to federal prosecutors for a criminal contempt investigation.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.