ChilliFresh has apparently spoken to Apple concerning the recent removal of 5,000 sexually explicit apps and published the following list of app scenarios that will no longer be allowed on the App Store. To be fair to Apple it is not easy because without some rules it would soon become dominated by developers with little originality who rely on sex to sell products, but these rules (if true) do seem very harsh to me. Don’t panic though- the Playboy app is still available to buy although I can’t understand why if these are indeed the new rules.
1. No images of women in bikinis (Ice skating tights are not OK either)
2. No images of men in bikinis! (I didn’t ask about Ice Skating tights for men)
3. No skin (he seriously said this) (I asked if a Burqa was OK, and the Apple guy got angry)
4. No silhouettes that indicate that Wobble can be used for wobbling boobs (yes – I am serious, we have to remove the silhouette in this pic)
5. No sexual connotations or innuendo: boobs, babes, booty, sex – all banned
6. Nothing that can be sexually arousing!! (I doubt many people could get aroused with the pic above but those puritanical guys at Apple must get off on pretty mundane things to find Wobble “overtly sexual!)
7. No apps will be approved that in any way imply sexual content (not sure how Playboy is still in the store, but …)
Darn, and I was about to submit my “Shaun-kini” app for approval
Brief serious point – if you’ve spent time making an app that suddenly doesn’t agree to “new regulations” its a lot of lost work :/
I guess this is due to the only real “check” apple can put in being “are you over 18?” – but then the same surely applies to violent games (Call of duty – zombies springs to mind) which require the same check? (not to mention movies etc.!)
Sigh…
I was surprised they took them all down–they had other options, like an additional “adult” category (but maybe they wouldn’t like the connotations that would come with that? Imagine a parent buying an iPod Touch with an app store with an adult category…).
However, something had to be done. There were so many of them (I’ve heard 5000?) and they first filled the Entertainment category, then the Lifestyle category, and were quickly filling up the Health & Fitness category, along with showing up in various non-applicable categories. Because they were popular (think about it), they were in the top 100 of those categories (and all the update lists). Eventually, they would have probably squeezed out most of the other apps. It was actually embarrassing to check your own software (some icons were NSFW) for ranking, let alone wondering what your customer would think when browsing. I would have chosen the “adult” category route, but maybe wiping them out was easier, since no one seems to be policing the categories (for example, a cooking app in Finance…Really? Actually I don’t blame them–it’s the only category where your app wasn’t sandwiched between skin apps. No pun intended.).
There were also problems with parental controls (and lots of complaints for that). The controls prevented buying the apps, but the screenshots and icons were still in full view and they were not very tame. Perhaps the iPad will be targeted to schools and that type of app seeded throughout the store wasn’t palatable? Ounce of prevention?
Good riddance.
“Darn, and I was about to submit my “Shaun-kini” app for approval.”
The fact the thought entered your mind is a worry in itself:)
“Good riddance.”
To a point- it seems more than strict to me and why is Playboy still there?
Shaun –
Playboy – I wouldn’t possibly want to suggest any exceptional treatment of a particular vendor (aka “Exemption on Tobacco advertising ban for formula one!”)
Wont miss them myself, may get to spot decent apps – aargon is now out for example.
Wonder how much it’ll cost them in lost revenue though.
“To a point- it seems more than strict to me and why is Playboy still there?”
Because of the articles.
At the moment, I think dumping this kind of app is the path of least resistance for Apple, for many of the reasons Justine alluded to. iPod Touches are being used by kids all the time, and, like many parents I’m sure, I’ve been more than a little concerned by the rise of this type of “app”. Glad to see them go.