Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney seems to be enjoying life at the moment. The phenomenal success of Unreal Engine and subsequently Fortnite has cemented Epic's position as one of the true giants of the industry, and from this position of strength, the company has begun to take extremely bold steps. The most obvious manifestation of this is the massive ongoing battle over royalties charged by Apple and Google's app stores.

For us common folk, one of the most fun parts of this scenario is watching Sweeney talk big while explaining how much he hates this and that of the platform holders. After the Apple trial was over, Sweeney noticed the news that Android phones in Massachusetts were forced to install state contract tracking software.

Obviously Sweeney is involving his usual hobby of Fortnite being blocked by malicious companies (you can install Fortnite on your Android phone, but not from the "default" Google Play store) but user control is another of his recurring themes. This is more a case of Goliath vs. Goliath on our David's watch, and while some may think it is arguable to automatically install government health apps during a pandemic, calling Google a "company with a rotten soul" is fighting words.

However, this blunt attitude is typical of Epic's approach to these platform holders. When the lawsuit against Google was announced late last year, the lawsuit stated: In 1998, Google was founded as an exciting young company with the unique motto "Don't Be Evil." In Google's Code of Conduct, this commandment is about 'how we serve our users' and 'more ...... It was also explained to be 'about doing the right thing more generally.'

"Twenty-two years later, Google has largely put that motto behind it, using its scale to wickedly serve competitors, innovators, customers, and users in the many markets it has grown to dominate. [Even this morning, Sweeney posted a Photoshop image of the Apple logo as a padlock and a cartoon comparing the platform holder to a fox. Does that make the developer a chicken?

One thing is for sure, Big Tim isn't scared: the Epic v. Apple case has not yet been decided, but the trial is over (for a full account of what happened, click here).