US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers has dismissed the lawsuit filed against Apple by Cydia creator Jay Freeman. However, he has been given a January 19 deadline to amend his original complaint and file it again. Apple will then have time until February 2 to respond to it.

The Cydia creator sued Apple in late 2020 for anti-competitive behavior and for establishing a monopoly over iOS app distribution. Cydia was a popular App Store alternative back in the day for jailbroken iPhones and iPads. In fact, it was the first app store to launch for the iPhone in early 2008 — a few months ahead of Apple’s App Store release. However, the store is no longer actively maintained now as consumer interest in jailbreak has waned.

The original lawsuit claimed the following:

Where it not for Apple’s anticompetitive acquisition and maintenance of an illegal monopoly over iOS app distribution, users today would actually be able to choose how and where to locate and obtain iOS apps, and developers would be able to use the iOS app distributor of their choice

Apple has been subjected to intense scrutiny and lawsuits from regulators and developers worldwide for the App Store rules. This has forced the company to make several changes to how the App Store works, including lowering the commission from 30 percent to 15 percent for small developers. To settle another class-action lawsuit, the company agreed to allow developers to appeal against the unfair rejection of their apps, directly reach out to customers about alternative payment methods, and more.

After years of doing very little to address the App Store issues, Apple is now being forced to change the store for good.