March 6 (Reuters) -

Apple ( AAPL ) escalated its feud with Epic Games on

Wednesday, blocking the Fortnite video-game maker from launching

its own online marketplace on iPhones and iPads in Europe.

The two companies have been in a legal battle since 2020,

when the gaming firm alleged that Apple's ( AAPL ) practice of charging

up to 30% commissions on in-app payments on iPhones and other

devices violated U.S. antitrust rules.

To distribute software on Apple ( AAPL ) iPhones, developers must

sign up for an account with Apple ( AAPL ) and agree to its terms. Apple ( AAPL )

terminated some of Epic's developer accounts in 2020, when Epic

pushed an update to its Fortnite app that violated Apple's ( AAPL )

in-app payment rules.

But Epic had recently secured a developer account in

Sweden as Apple ( AAPL ) prepares to change many of its rules to comply

with the Digital Markets Act in the European Union, which

requires Apple ( AAPL ) to allow third parties to host their own app

stores on its devices for the first time.

Epic Games said it had intended to use the Sweden-based

developer account to bring its online marketplace, Epic Games

Store, and the Fortnite game to iOS devices in Europe.

The game developer said Apple ( AAPL ) terminated that account.

Epic alleged that by terminating its account, Apple ( AAPL ) was removing

one of the largest potential competitors to the Apple App Store.

"This is a serious violation of the DMA (Digital Markets

Act) and shows Apple ( AAPL ) has no intention of allowing true

competition on iOS devices," Epic Games said.

The European Commission, the executive body of the EU, did

not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In a statement, Apple ( AAPL ) said that it believes court rulings

have confirmed that it has "sole discretion" to terminate any

Epic Games developer account after Epic Games breached its

contractual obligations under Apple's ( AAPL ) developer agreements,

which must be signed to secure a developer account.

"In light of Epic's past and ongoing behavior, Apple ( AAPL )

chose to exercise that right" to terminate Epic Games' account,

Apple ( AAPL ) said.

Apple ( AAPL ) in January proposed certain changes ahead of a

March 7 deadline to comply with certain conditions of the DMA, a

legislation meant to make it easier for European users to move

between competing services.

The company said it would allow alternative app stores on

iPhones and an opt-out from using the in-app payments system,

but set a "core technology fee" of 50 euro cents per user

account per year for developers who sign up for the new regime.