Apple (AAPL) failed to convince an appeals court to overturn a court ruling holding the company in contempt for failing to open its platform to rival app makers but succeeded in getting the court to allow it to charge third-party companies referral fees, according to a court filing on Thursday.

"Most of the six prescriptive restrictions that the district court imposed on Apple's conduct properly restated Apple's existing obligations under the injunction, but some parts of the restrictions were overbroad," the companies said.

The lawsuit was originally filed by Epic Games, which contended that Apple unfairly used its control over the iOS operating system to limit app makers' access to consumers.

Apple was held in contempt and penalized for failing to abide by previous court orders to open its operating system.

The appeals court modification gives Apple the ability to charge a "reasonable, non-prohibitive commission" on purchases made from third-party app companies.

Apple mostly won the lawsuit, but was required in a 2021 court injunction to allow developers to include links in their apps directing users to alternative purchasing methods.

Apple did not immediately reply to MT Newswires' request for comment.