While Epic Games previously accused Apple of holding back the iOS version of Fortnite—which has since gone live on the App Store in the U.S.—now Microsoft is pointing fingers at Cupertino for stalling one of its own mobile initiatives.

According to a report by The Verge, Microsoft claims that Apple is the reason behind the delay of its Xbox mobile store. The company submitted an amicus brief supporting Epic Games in its legal fight against Apple, arguing that Apple’s restrictive App Store policies are still a roadblock, even after the court ruling that seemingly opened up iOS to third-party storefronts like the Epic Games Store and Xbox’s.

In its filing, Microsoft wrote: *“The district court’s ruling allows Apple to retain in-app exclusivity, but it should have at least let Microsoft give consumers access to its own web-based store through a link where they can buy digital goods off-app and use them in games. That’s exactly what Microsoft wants to offer—but Apple is still standing in the way. Before the recent ruling, Apple’s anti-steering rules prevented Microsoft from even telling users about alternative payment methods. Now, those same rules still impose higher costs and tighter communication limits.”*

Microsoft also emphasized that it’s long wanted to let iOS users of the Xbox app purchase and stream games from the cloud or their own devices, directly within the app. *“Apple’s policies made it impossible to deliver this integrated experience,”* Microsoft stated, *“but the ruling gives us room to explore it—at least until Apple wins on appeal, which could reset everything.”*

The Xbox mobile store was originally set to launch in July last year. By November, Xbox president Sarah Bond had already accused Google of trying to block the app from going live within the Android ecosystem. Seems like both tech giants are giving Microsoft a hard time—Matrix glitch, anyone?

Source: WCCFTech, The Verge