Apple CEO Tim Cook to testify Friday as Epic trial nears end

Apple CEO Tim Cook will take the witness stand on Friday in a high-stakes courtroom battle

SAN RAMON, Calif -- Apple CEO Tim Cook will take the witness stand this Friday in a high-stakes courtroom battle over the lucrative commissions the iPhone maker has been raking in from its mobile app store. The timing of Cook's highly anticipated testimony was confirmed Wednesday when a federal judge granted Apple's request to allow the 60-year-old executive to be the first witness sworn in Friday morning during a trial that has been unfolding in an Oakland, California, courtroom since the beginning of this month. The trial revolves around an antitrust lawsuit filed last year by Epic Games, the maker of the popular video game Fortnite. Epic is trying prove that commissions ranging from 15% to 30% on transactions in apps installed on iPhones, iPads and iPods are part of a monopoly that Apple has created around a fortress blocking other payment options on its mobile devices.