As part of its litigation with Epic, Apple filed a motion to verify the testimony of Microsoft's vice president of business development for Xbox, Lori Wright. She acted as a witness for Epic Games on May 5.
In the courtroom, Wright spoke about various aspects of the gaming business and noted that a 30% commission on consoles in general and Xbox in particular is simply necessary since the devices are sold at a loss, and the commission lets their manufacturers earn money this way.
According to Microsoft's classification, consoles are highly targeted hardware that can only run programs or games that are specifically designed for that hardware.
Recorded News — Tech News
As noted by the lawyers of Epic Games, the manufacturers of game consoles need to keep such a high commission since what they sell on the platform is their primary source of profit – they do not earn anything from the hardware. This means the high cost of games, a closed market platform, and high commission fees are justified for consoles.
However, according to Epic Games, the iPhone should be considered a general-purpose device, which means that it is necessary to allow users to install applications from outside, and not just from the App Store. Moreover, the company's smartphones are not sold at a loss for Apple, meaning that Apple's high 30% App Store commission is unfair.
However, after Wright's official statement under oath, Apple questioned its veracity and demanded proof that Microsoft consoles are sold at a loss. Apple is dissatisfied with the fact that Microsoft did not provide enough documents to confirm Wright's words. The Cupertino giant asks the judge to recognize the testimony as invalid since it considers the witness not trustworthy.