Week Cal HD pulled from app store

[porcupine8]

Week Cal HD, which has gotten a lot of love around here as a top notch calendar app, is no longer available in the app store. What's more, the devs claim that Apple never told them why it was pulled and are ignoring their inquiries.

They do point out that the new calendar in iOS 5 suspiciously includes an awful lot of features that people were buying week cal for. Is apple really kicking a developer with a high quality, well-selling app to the curb because they dont want the direct competition? Competition with an app included in the OS for free, mind you, so it's not like apple loses money if you use week cal.

 

[Ainkor]

I use that app on my iPad 2 and I was bummed when I set it up with iOS 5 beta that I couldn't download it. Luckily I had it saved so I loaded it up locally. Too bad it crashes on each use in iOS 5.

Since I couldn't use my favorite app, back to 4.3.3 I went!

 

[misterbig]

Wow I'm glad I bought my copy before it was taken offline. This is really the best Calendar app I've ever used, and I've used quite a few. Apple should be taken to task for their anti-competitive practices, this is way worse than Microsoft bundling Internet Explorer with Windows.

 

[totalimba]

Apparently Apple has responded (http://www.utilitap.com/weekcalendarhd/). I am really curious how this is going to play out.

 

[Fedorov]

As a beta tester of this app I am gutted for the developer - shame on Apple for taking so long to explain and then giving an absolutely pathetic excuse as to why

 

[Mac.World]

Well this is a bit upsetting to say the least. Apple needs to take a hard look at those devs they are alienating with this sort of practice.

I for one only use Week Cal HD and love it. I'm not going to be too happy if iOS 5 inherently prevents the use of this app!

 

[Matthew Yohe]

Please. They basically ripped off the implementation from the Lion sneak peak early this year and now cry fowl?

I mean really, I'm not the only person to notice this: http://www.macstories.net/tag/week-calendar/

 

[porcupine8]

Please. They basically ripped off the implementation from the Lion sneak peak early this year and now cry fowl?

I mean really, I'm not the only person to notice this: http://www.macstories.net/tag/week-calendar/

Oh come on - they made several major UI improvements over Apple's calendar app, most of which have nothing to do with lion given that they are touchscreen-specific, and you say they're ripping off apple for using a similar skin? And that this similar skin totally negates the fact that their app was pulled for, according to apple, using a public framework specifically supplied to devs for this purpose?

 

[Matthew Yohe]

Oh come on - they made several major UI improvements over Apple's calendar app, most of which have nothing to do with lion given that they are touchscreen-specific, and you say they're ripping off apple for using a similar skin? And that this similar skin totally negates the fact that their app was pulled for, according to apple, using a public framework specifically supplied to devs for this purpose?

Are you serious? They said "These two screens look too much like Apple's own app."

Yeah, it's not just those two screens. It's the entire app. The major UI improvements are direct copies of Lion's which of course is what is making its way to iOS 5. Thus, they copied.

 

[porcupine8]

Are you serious? They said "These two screens look too much like Apple's own app."

Yeah, it's not just those two screens. It's the entire app. The major UI improvements are direct copies of Lion's which of course is what is making its way to iOS 5. Thus, they copied.

A) Really? Swipe to change months/days/etc, tap and hold to add events, etc were part of the iCal lion developer preview? Because those are the kinds of functionality I got Week Cal for, which Apple is now (finally) putting in their app.

B) I got the part about the skins from your own link - that's the only similarity it noted.

C) You might be interested to see this screenshot of the event screen in question, released before the lion iCal preview:

http://twitpic.com/499ich

 

[Mac.World]

Are you serious? They said "These two screens look too much like Apple's own app."
a
Yeah, it's not just those two screens. It's the entire app. The major UI improvements are direct copies of Lion's which of course is what is making its way to iOS 5. Thus, they copied.

I think Apple's app looks too much like Week Cal's. And since Week Cal has been out for quite some time, it's tough for me to believe that Week Cal some how copied Apple and not the other way around.

I mean, when iOS 5 is known as the copyist update (BBM and Android notification system, not to mention other Cydia app rip-offs) you're gonna have a tough sell saying Apple came up with Week Cal's app first.

 

[Fedorov]

Week Cal has been around a very long time and it's sad to see Apple bullying devs like this.

If you were the dev of this app, now losing all your income I doubt you'd be so quick to defend Apple sorry.

 

[maclab]

Apple can't even copy there ideas correctly, the Apple calendar is useful for soccer mums to schedule there kids games and thats about it!

 

[crashnburn]

Anyone got this thing backed up? Please PM me.

 

[kerr]

Given how awesome Week Cal is on the iPhone, I can only imagine how good Week Call HD would be on an iPad. I have no issues with Apple refusing apps that are offensive, but if a dev has allegedly infringed something, just tell them so they can fix it up and re-submit.