Apple today submitted its witness list for the upcoming bench trial with Epic Games, and several Apple executives will testify, including Apple CEO Tim Cook, Apple Fellow Phil Schiller and Apple Senior Vice President of Software Engineering Craig Federighi.
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The cook is questioned directly for an hour, including a one-hour cross-examination. Federighi will testify for two hours with an hour-long cross-examination, while Schiller, who is in charge of the App Store, will testify for a total of 10 hours. All Apple witnesses will appear in person.
In a statement to MacRumorsApple said its executives are eager to share the impact of the App Store on innovation and economies around the world.
Our senior executives look forward to sharing with the court the very positive impact the App Store has had on innovation, economies around the world and the customer experience over the past 12 years. We are confident that the case will prove Epic willfully violated its agreement solely to increase its revenues, resulting in their removal from the App Store. In doing so, Epic bypassed the App Store security features in a way that would reduce competition and compromise consumer privacy and data security.
Apple’s witness list also includes App Store Vice President Matt Fischer, Head of Fraud Engineering Algorithms and Risk Eric Friedman, Director of Commerce and Payments Eric Gray, Game Development Manager Mark Grimm, and other associates in marketing, developer relationships and related areas.
Epic’s witnesses include Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic Games and other Epic employees, and third-party witnesses include executives from Facebook, Microsoft and Nvidia, plus iTunes chief Eddy Cue and former iOS software chief Scott Forstall. Epic said in February that it tried to get in touch with Forstall but had trouble finding him. Epic plans to hire Forstall for his involvement in the launch of the App Store prior to his departure from the company in 2013. In a statement, Epic said it is not alone in its fight with Apple.
The chorus of developers speaking out against Apple and their anti-competitive practices has gotten louder. We are not alone in this battle. We look forward to pushing for competition in app distribution and payment processes.
The trial will begin on Monday, May 3. It’s a bench trial, meaning no jury will be involved. Earlier this month, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez urged a personal trial, saying the case is “important enough” that the court would deal with it personally.