Epic Tries To Show Apple Is Antitrust Violator Beyond App Store

A top Apple executive tasked with defending the App Store in a monopoly lawsuit by Epic Games found himself having to answer Tuesday for a spate of other alleged antitrust fouls by the world's most valuable company. From a report: During Phil Schiller's cross-examination in a trial in Oakland, California, Apple's former global marketing chief was confronted about several instances in which the company has locked in users and made it difficult for them to switch away from its devices. Katherine Forrest, a lawyer for Epic, pointed out that Schiller emailed his colleagues a 2016 news article titled 'iMessage is the glue that keeps me stuck to the iPhone,' which explained that Apple's messaging platform is a reason people don't switch to Android devices.

She also quizzed Schiller on the idea that users can't easily move music and video purchased on Apple services to Google's Android. She went further, indicating that Apple's iCloud Keychain service for storing passwords on Apple devices can't synchronize with Android devices. Her point: Apple doesn't just lock in developers with its App Store rules, it also locks in consumers, limiting their ability to switch to competitors. In response, Schiller said many users subscribe to video and music streaming services and can input their passwords into a new device manually. He also suggested that users could use third-party password managers.

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