Apple violated a U.S. court order that required the iPhone maker to allow greater competition for app downloads and payment methods in its lucrative App Store and will be referred to federal prosecutors,

The judge in Epic v. Apple has banned Apple from charging a commission on purchases made outside the App Store because of its ongoing anticompetitive behavior.

A federal judge has strongly rebuked Apple, finding that the iPhone maker willfully violated a court injunction in an antitrust case filed by "Fortnite" maker Epic Games.U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers had ordered Apple to lower the barriers protecting its previously exclusive payment system for in-app digital transactions and allow developers to display links to alternative options.