App Approval

iMovie App Violates Apple’s Own Guidelines

In the wake of an FTC investigation, Apple decided yesterday to loosen its restrictions on iOS app development and published full guidelines about applications submitted for review in the App Store.

These guidelines aim at helping developers understand how Apple reviews applications. To quote Apple, "we hope it will make us more transparent and help our developers create even more successful apps for the App Store."

Well, speaking of transparency, can someone at Apple explain to me why Apple's iMovie application for iPhone violates their own guidelines?

Does Apple’s SDK for iOS Kill Creativity?

I can't imagine owning an iPhone or other Apple handheld without the addition of the App Store. I've said before that I believe it to be the greatest asset to the iOS platform. So what's the problem?

Apple Investor outlines the possibility that a vague module and a totalitarian controlled acceptance process has caused developers to walk on egg shells thus stunting their creativity. Some say the terms of service are often inconsistent, but as with any report like this, there are two lines of thought to be heard...

Enough With Apple Dictatorship

I am growing tired of Apple's ridiculous app approval process. There is not one day going by without Apple making the headlines of tech blogs for their absurd abuse of power over developers. At first, I covered these nonsensical rejections, but there's been so many that I stopped reporting them.

The latest grotesque rejection from the App Store is GV Mobile, a Google Voice application that was approved last April by Phil Schiller himself, Apple’s senior Vice President of Worldwide Product Marketing... Fast forward 3 months later and the app is rejected because it is "duplicating features that the iPhone comes with (Dialer, SMS, etc)". What a nonsense!

Last month, Apple rejected iLaugh Lite for no reason at all, saying that it reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to reject an application for any reason. If this doesn't sound like a pure dictatorship, I don't know what it is...

What really annoys me is that people don't seem to care much and just deal with it. If it was Microsoft doing the same thing, people would be ranting all over the web. But it's Apple, the great innovative, customer oriented company so that makes it ok... To me it doesn't!

Apple is taking the risk of seeing the most innovative developers jump over to Android or the Palm Pre, but does it really care? It seems to me Apple cares more about money coming in through fart applications than it cares about really pushing the limits of innovation in the App Store.

If you were looking for yet another reason the jailbreak your iPhone, then here you go. This is an opportunity for developers to flip their third finger to Apple and make their apps available on jailbroken iPhones. That's exactly what the developer of GV Mobile is going to do has done as GV Mobile is now available for free on Cydia. I just wish more developers would follow the jailbreak way. No one, including Apple, should dictate what I can and cannot do with my iPhone.

What do you think of the app approval process? Do you think it's ok for Apple to reject whatever it wants, or do you feel that you, the end user, should decide what's good or not for you?

As a side note, you can see that my Photoshop skills are very limited... If any of you guys want to make a better image for this article, feel free to get in touch with me.

Apple Dictatorship Hits Again

I try not to write too much about the app approval process because it seems to be a never ending discussion. However, some events piss me off so much sometimes that I have to vent out by writing a post about it. That's the case about a new app rejection I first heard about on TUAW.

Usually, when Apple rejects an app, it gives somewhat of a reason like "violating the SDK" or "objectionable content". This time though, the reason for rejecting an update to iLaugh Lite simply is that Apple can do whatever they want to do.

This to me is very similar to a dictatorship and it is absolutely scandalous. But what can you do? You can just shut up and hope things get better, just like the good obedient consumers we are.

Peekababe Finally Makes It To The App Store

A couple of weeks ago, I reported about Peekababe being rejected from the App Store because it was too much of a sexy app. Well, even though the app doesn't seem to have changed at all, Peekababe is now allowed in the App Store, proving one more time that the app approval process is just a giant joke.

According to TechCrunch:

So why did Apple approve the app this time? Well it may be because Sookie now includes a 12+ rating for it. “My rating was based on the guidelines that they have for the iTunes store. Better to be safe than sorry,” Bigio says. There is also a clear note saying that it does not contain any nude or pornographic pictures. 12+ is kind of funny though. Something tells me a lot of parents wouldn’t want their 12-year-old playing with this app.

I really like the irony that it's not ok for kids under 12 to see ladies in sexy lingerie but it sure is ok for them to kill, rob, and sell drugs in the Mafia-like iPhone games...

You can download Peekababe on iTunes for $0.99.