Australia: Federal Court of Australia granted Australian Competition and Consumer Commission leave to intervene in Epic Games v Apple over relief from market power misuse findings

On 21 April 2026, the Federal Court of Australia granted the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) leave to intervene in Epic Games v Apple, limited to written submissions on specific relief issues of public interest. The relief hearing follows the Federal Court's August 2025 finding that Apple misused its market power in breach of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 by restricting the use of alternative app distribution methods and in-app payment methods on Apple devices. The ACCC aims to submit arguments concerning the promotion of competitive digital services markets and the public interest nature of the remedial orders the Court may make. The ACCC has monitored the proceedings since November 2020 and was previously granted leave to appear as amicus curiae in 2021. The relief hearing resumes on 28 April 2026. In March 2026, the Court ordered by consent that Epic's proceeding against Google be dismissed following a global settlement agreement between Epic and Google.