techcrunch.com/2010/02/20/app-store-rules-sexy -> techcrunch.com/2010/02/20/app-store-rules-sexy/
alarming move on Apple's part, if only because it shows that the company is willing to throw developers (and their livelihoods) under the bus without any notice at all. Now developers are left wondering: just what exactly is allowed on the App Store? As it turns out, the new policy may be even more restrictive than it first appeared. Earlier this week, when Apple notified developers that their applications were being removed, it said that it was removing applications with "overtly sexual content". That sounds like the ban only extends to apps that are little more than soft core porn. But we're hearing from multiple developers that it actually means anything that could be even the slightest bit titillating in any way -- including swimsuits and fitness outfits. In short, if your app has skin, it will probably be rejected. One developer, who wished to remain anonymous, spoke to multiple App Store reviewers about the new policy. He was told, "there will be no more applications that are for any purpose of excitement or titillation". He was told this included swimsuits -- both bikinis and one-piece suits. Along with having dozens of his "sexy" apps removed, Apple also removed one that featured a popular fitness model in her workout clothes (the app was a marketing vehicle for the athlete's line of protein powder). When he asked if the ban would also affect apps like Sports Illustrated's swimsuit application, the Apple employee wouldn't give a clear answer, but it was implied that the SI app would probably be removed as well.
list of rules to his blog based on what he learned: 1 No images of women in bikinis (Ice skating tights are not OK either) 2 No images of men in bikinis! Keep in mind that these rules may not be set in stone -- Apple is purposely vague about its policies, and they're probably still changing. These moves are pretty ridiculous given the fact that the iPhone offers a full set of parental controls -- Apple should have just blocked the applications from view of anyone who wasn't old enough to see them.
outlined yesterday, is how callous Apple is being with regard to the well-being of iPhone developers. It's easy to paint anyone behind a "sexy" iPhone app as a scumbag, but the fact of the matter is that a lot of young men have iPhones, and they're willing to pay a few dollars for sexy photos -- it's business. There are magazine empires that are built around this very principle. The developer who I spoke to says that he's spent the last year regularly speaking to Apple representatives, attempting to tweak his "sexy" apps to accommodate Apple's constantly evolving standards. He was told things like (paraphrased) "a woman can be pictured in a bathing suit, but she can't have her thumb on the suit's strings" -- because that would have been too sexually suggestive. He'd make the modifications and resubmit, oftentimes only to have another photo get called out for an equally bizarre reason. During these back-and-forths he was told that things would get better when the iPhone's parental controls came out. And that was true for a little while, until Apple changed its mind. After making around $30,000 last year from the App Store, he's essentially lost his income. And Wobble's company, which was pulling in around $500 a day, is now making less than $10. Apple gave these developers the green light to build "sexy" apps, and now that they've built businesses around them, it's tossing them aside without so much as an apology.
February 20th, 2010 at 4:40 pm UTC This is going to completely screw up about 7 of my clients games. One of which is Duke Nuke'em, anyone that gets sexually aroused by Duke is going to need lots of therapy. I am a big fan of IUGO, but does Apple honestly think that I go into the bathroom with my iPhone fully loaded with Daisy M and a bunch of wet wipes? Sorry Apple, but if that is what gets you off then you are pretty screwed up. I am simply stunned that Apple goes from their recent form of drastically improving the developer experience ie four hour approval times etc to this stuff. Let's break the rules down: 1 No images of women in bikinis (Ice skating tights are not OK either) Apple are not even following ESRB guidelines on this one. So no skin, can we please, pretty please with sugar on top define what skin is? Plushophilia Perhaps liking one of your stuffed animals a little too much as a child can lead to this fetish. It is being sexually attracted to stuffed animals or people dressed in animal costumes. Some plushophiles like to masturbate using small stuffed animals, and some like to dress up in costumes and have sex with others wearing costumes. Someone who is into bestiality, but doesn't want to actually have sex with animals could also enjoy this fetish. Resident evil, yep that is toast also: Vorarephilia This is arousal by the thought of being eaten by someone, eating someone else, or watching someone eat somebody else. Perhaps this is related to cannibalism, but how someone develops a fetish like this, I really could not even speculate upon. It involves pure fantasy (at least hopefully it does), since it would be very difficult to make any of the aforementioned situations reality. It can be an attraction to inflatable animals and toys, deriving sexual pleasure from wearing inflatable suits, or just being aroused from the thought of people inflating like balloons. Perhaps an inflatophile could enjoy the company of a blow-up doll a little too much. This is another fetish that any psychologist would probably have a hard time explaining. I'm sure that there are many geeks out there who fantasize about having sex with a perfect android woman, but this fetish can also involve fantasizing about having sex with a non-humanoid robot. I guess someone who really loves technology or science fiction could be into this. Many inmates who are imprisoned for outrageous crimes receive love letters from women. I guess the average bad boy isn't enough for women who are hybristophiles. Again my point is, is that the amount of crazy crap people find arousing is nuts.
February 21st, 2010 at 8:28 am UTC Adult App will always be a part of our life, I don't see any reason why Apple should ban it. All the while, Android does allow Porn store and even some explicit poses...
February 21st, 2010 at 2:51 am UTC Uh, Archangel, Symbian has the biggest mobile developer community in the world. Also, since it's a mature platform, a lot of the apps you rave on about have existed - as they have for WinMo - for years so there's no need to write them afresh.
February 21st, 2010 at 1:23 pm UTC People by Nokia "smart phones" purely by accident (okay not everyone) the same way many people are now accidently buying phones with some version of Android.
February 21st, 2010 at 5:54 pm UTC People buy the iphone because it is trendy. People who want a smartphone that is actually funtional buy either a Nokia or a Blackberry. Apple iphones only outsell Microsoft OS smartphones by 4%, so the fanboys really should take a reality check before they continue the fiction that the iphone has taken over the world.
February 21st, 2010 at 2:49 am UTC Michael, I think Nokia are the ones with 40% of the market and who increased their share last quarter by 5%. And Ovi is well over a million downloads a day with a high growth rate each month so I guess Nokia owners do know what an app is.
February 21st, 2010 at 11:41 am UTC i've installed so many apps on my N73 that it became unstable, all for free, and without having to have anyone censor shit for me. I also had lots of free installed in my 3650 , that one was around way before Apple started thinking about getting in the mobile market. And when i get my N900 i'll sure make good use of the 32GB of internal memory by installing lots of free uncensored shit.
February 20th, 2010 at 4:11 pm UTC Randy, trust me, there are tons of us out there that feel the same way as you. Listen, perv, if you choose to make money exploiting women, men, even children, then you deserve everything you get. I'm no stranger to that stuff, but as I've matured and started a family I realize what a shallow and sad life that is. Like others have sa...
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