Overview
- The marketplace launched Friday in Japan under a new competition law that allows third‑party app stores.
- Users need iOS 17.6 or later and must approve the install in Settings through a nine‑step flow.
- At launch the catalog includes Fortnite, Fall Guys, and Rocket League Sideswipe, with no third‑party apps yet.
- Epic says Apple’s 5% Core Technology Commission and required transaction reporting deter developers, and it is urging Japan’s antitrust regulator to enforce the law.
- In Europe, Apple cut the install flow from 15 steps to six after pressure, which Epic says reduced player drop‑off by 60%.