Epic Games Claims Fortnite Is at Full Penetration on Console

During the 2021 antitrust litigation between Epic Games and Apple, Epic Games asserted that its flagship title, Fortnite, had reached full market penetration on console platforms. Consequently, the company identified mobile devices as the primary avenue for future growth, citing the ubiquity of smartphones compared to the more limited ownership of dedicated gaming consoles and PCs. This testimony was central to Epic’s argument regarding the necessity of restoring the game to the iOS App Store following its removal in August 2020.

Data presented during the proceedings highlighted the significance of the mobile segment to the game's ecosystem. Prior to its removal, the iOS version of Fortnite maintained approximately 2.5 million daily active users, representing roughly 10% of the game's total daily active user base of 30 million. Between the 2018 launch on iOS and the 2020 removal, players logged 2.86 billion hours on the platform. Despite these figures, internal projections indicated that iOS was expected to account for less than 6% of total revenue in 2020, significantly trailing the contributions from PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

The testimony emphasized that the loss of mobile access not only curtailed revenue but also disrupted social connectivity for a segment of the player base that relied exclusively on mobile devices. By framing mobile as a critical, high-growth platform essential for maintaining social networks, Epic sought to underscore the competitive harm caused by its exclusion from the Apple ecosystem. The legal dispute arose after Epic implemented a direct payment system that bypassed Apple’s 30% commission, leading to the game's removal from both the iOS App Store and Google Play.