Apple said bringing iMessage to Android would 'hurt us more than help us'

• Apple said creating iMessage for Android would cause harm to the company, a court filing said.
• One former employee said iMessage locks in users in the Apple universe.
• The court filing was a fact-finding document released as part of the Epic Games case against Apple.

Apple doesn't want to make iMessage for Android because it would hurt the company more than help it, a new court filing said.

Epic Games, the creator of video game Fortnite, brought a lawsuit against Apple last August that claimed the iPhone-maker violated antitrust laws through its app store. The video game company also says the tech giant tried to lock in users to its phones, tablets and other devices by keeping some popular services, like iMessage, exclusive.

In a fact-finding document released Thursday, Epic cites Apple executives saying the company decided not to develop a version iMessage for Android phones as early as 2013 to avoid causing harm to the company.

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"The#1 most difficult [reason] to leave the Apple universe app is iMessage . . . iMessage amounts to serious lock-in" said a former Apple employee in 2016.

To which Phil Schiller, an Apple executive in charge of the App Store, said, "Moving iMessage to Android will hurt us more than help us."

The document also said Craig Federighi, Apple's senior vice president of software engineering and the executive in charge of iOS, was afraid that "iMessage on Android would simply serve to remove [an] obstacle to iPhone families giving their kids Android phones."

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Apple did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

In its counterargument against the video-game maker, Apple said Epic breached its developer agreement and the app store guidelines when it created a direct pay option that circumvented Apple's in-app purchase.

The iPhone-maker said Epic has "enjoyed the tremendous resources that Apple pours into its App Store to constantly innovate and create new opportunities for developers and experiences for customers."

The court case is set to start May 3, with top executives including Apple CEO Tim Cook and Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney set to take the stand, among others.