I think the iPhone would need to become a dominant mobile platform before they would act. The fact that developers have agreed to abide by Apple's terms may soften the EU's desire to intervene, but won't necessarily prevent them from acting.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple Extends Non-Disclosure to App Store Rejection Letters
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I think the iPhone would need to become a dominant mobile platform before they would act. The fact that developers have agreed to abide by Apple's terms may soften the EU's desire to intervene, but won't necessarily prevent them from acting.
Freedom of speech!
What I do with my own life is my problem as long I do not hurt anybody else, now, if they feel hurted because of my freedom they are free to feel that way.
In other words, everything that hurts is not a sin.
Probably Jobs like Hugo Chavez after the Human Rights representative was kicked out of my country by talking about the lack of freedom of speech.
Come on Apple! you have your crazy rules and people feel agrevated they have the right to complain, period!
I believe Steve's is getting a bit old.
What I do with my own life is my problem as long I do not hurt anybody else, now, if they feel hurted because of my freedom they are free to feel that way.
In other words, everything that hurts is not a sin.
Probably Jobs like Hugo Chavez after the Human Rights representative was kicked out of my country by talking about the lack of freedom of speech.
Come on Apple! you have your crazy rules and people feel agrevated they have the right to complain, period!
I believe Steve's is getting a bit old.
The iPhone and the Mac are two completely separate components of Apple. They may one day go power crazy with the Mac, but the controversy surrounding the App Store does not suggest changes with the Mac IMHO. User needs are very different between the platforms. With mobile platforms, resources are under much more restrictive constraints than with desktops. The extra control, unfortunately abused in this case, is necessary to some degree. Simply look at Windows Mobile to see why.
Then let us all hope they act and prevent this from happening.
Microsoft was bad enough. Now Apple is putting non disclosures on it's rejection notices.
This in a Global Community has to be dealt with.
Developers can't talk about what they're developing (Meaning Apple can steal their ideas as they tried with a weak attempt with Pandora and Non Genius.
Developers can't tell people their application has been rejected for no legitimate reason.
We as of last week were had a country that encouraged capital ingenuity. Has anyone read George Orwell's 1984.
Seems to hard to distinguish what's happening today.
Apple is basically just playing the game as best suits them. Let developers enrich the platform, but keep them on a tight leash.
The US courts/authorities aren't going to act on issues such as this, because of the (until this week!
) mantra of non-intervention of/regulation in the markets. The EU is far more likely to act, but only when they believe anti-competitive action is negatively affecting the market/consumer. If the iPhone becomes truly pervasive - if it becomes the de-facto mobile computing standard, then the EU will act; but only then.
Another interesting question is what can Apple do to developers outside the US who violate the NDA? Sure, the agreement probably states any disputes would be handled in Californian courts, but how would they enforce rulings on non-US developers?
Kind of ironic that the only company who are original are the ultimate copiers!
Just think if they held on to their original program... and branched into the computer market. Fast forward to today...
Maybe we would all own Xphones....and I bet they'd have copy and paste
First, they ban apps at their discretion.
Now they ban talking about it.
What next?
There goes my app to nowhere:-(
neilford
Now they ban talking about it.
What next?
There goes my app to nowhere:-(
neilford
Now its "we'll tell you what and how to think." The unfortunate thing here is that the genius of Steve Jobs in inherently self destructive in nature.
Well, in this case Apple isn't really trying to filter out the junk but to filter out the competing software that has functionality similar to Apples apps such as mail claiming that it is duplicate functionality although to me it has not ben duplicate functionality but improved functionality. There are several examples of this and that is totally lame. This is what is stopping me from developing for the iPhone platform, why would I put money, time and efforts into making software for a platform when I risk to be blocked out?
And if Apple chooses not to respond?
Because Apple is becoming the bad guy. From the type of computer you buy to the Apps you use on the iPhone, they seem to be wanting to have more control over their users and developers.
I see no reason for all this uproar. Walmart carries a lot of junk (IMO) on their shelves, but reject even more products. Yet vendors still line up by the hundreds every morning to try and get their products on Walmart's shelves. Apple is just doing the same with their app storefront.
And as for whether I've had an app rejected... no comment.
.
And as for whether I've had an app rejected... no comment.
.
If Walmart turns down your product you can always go somewhere else or even sell the product yourself. If Apple turns down your iPhone software you are out of luck.
I think this is going to change once 80% of iPhones are jail broken just to use good apps. I think Apple just put themselves in a hole. Look at the backlash on the Spore DRM. Your going to start seeing the same thing happening here. Ugh... I kind of sound like an analyst. Anyhow, I hope everything works out. They just need to make windows make an awesome MSN app and I'm happy.
To expound on the previous comment. I've been mulling over Apple place in the market for a while. the thing is the slogan "Think different" really did start to die out with the return of Jobs. I still am 100% certain that corporate building at any cost occured when Jobs had his bout with cancer. It was a wakeup call to him and the company to ask the question: OK if Jobs saved our bacon by coming back what happens if he dies? the best defance for such an occurance is to build the company. Because even though Apple was doing well after Jobs came back, and stabilized, growth was moderate. I firmly believe this is why Apple no longer takes risks with their hardware, or their OS. IMHO real innovation requires leaps of faith that this idea really will spark something. Apple's strategy over the last 8 years has been THIN, THIN, THIN, THIN, THIN. Even the iPhone was a natural progression of OS X, because the iPod GUI really is dated at this point. I could argue that even the Zune's GUI is better then the iPod classic's at this point, but that is another debate for another day.
No Apple has been taking the conservative route to build a rainy day fund. And its policies have become more and more like big blue, that ironically Mr. Jobs loathed back in the 80's.
If you want to see a company that embodies what Apple was back in the 70's, 80's, and early 90's you needn't look any farther then Google. they have done more to foster an open internet in the last 3 years then Apple has done in the last 9.
And yet people still cling to Apple as if they are the Apple of old. Fond memories and catchy slogan don't keep a company from being the best friend of the consumer. I would ask people one question. One that I think personifies the change in Apple.
If the 25th anniversary of the Mac had been back in the 1980's do you guys think Apple would have gone all out to celebrate it? Think about it. The obvious answer would have been that they would have gone balls to the walls with making it a huge celebration. Now look at what Apple did. Nothing. Zip. Natta. This speaks volumes to me IMHO. The Apple of old would do things because its cool, because it went against the grain. No they do thing, IMHO of course, because their lawyers say so.
this isn't the Apple people keep remembering fondly of and it kills me to see people no realize it.
How does this play into the thread? Simple. Apple, again, currently has more in common with big blue and Microsoft of old then they do with the Apple of old. Microsoft is still Microsoft where they are playing games as usual, however the DoJ rattled them. I think it finally sunk in that they are a huge company. (Yes it sound like a DUH idea, but companies that grow faster then their culture can grow think that something that a small company would get away with is still no big deal.) As such there is a certain amount of humbleness that, as lame as it sounds, is occurring at MS. Call it a maturing process if you will.
Meanwhile Apple has yet to feel any type of slap down, either from its customer base or the DoJ and this emboldens them in a way that even MS never was. When your user base will, by and large, never question your actions and put faith simply based on their old slogan "think different" how could they not think they can do no wrong?
So I would ask this: who is ultimately responsible for things such as this NDA's for rejection letters? Apple? Or its user base for not calling shenanigans on their policies and forcing them to realize that they need to stop being ***hats.
Whatever. Its 12AM, and no doubt someone somewhere will make an excuse for Apple, because after all; they can do no wrong.
No Apple has been taking the conservative route to build a rainy day fund. And its policies have become more and more like big blue, that ironically Mr. Jobs loathed back in the 80's.
If you want to see a company that embodies what Apple was back in the 70's, 80's, and early 90's you needn't look any farther then Google. they have done more to foster an open internet in the last 3 years then Apple has done in the last 9.
And yet people still cling to Apple as if they are the Apple of old. Fond memories and catchy slogan don't keep a company from being the best friend of the consumer. I would ask people one question. One that I think personifies the change in Apple.
If the 25th anniversary of the Mac had been back in the 1980's do you guys think Apple would have gone all out to celebrate it? Think about it. The obvious answer would have been that they would have gone balls to the walls with making it a huge celebration. Now look at what Apple did. Nothing. Zip. Natta. This speaks volumes to me IMHO. The Apple of old would do things because its cool, because it went against the grain. No they do thing, IMHO of course, because their lawyers say so.
this isn't the Apple people keep remembering fondly of and it kills me to see people no realize it.
How does this play into the thread? Simple. Apple, again, currently has more in common with big blue and Microsoft of old then they do with the Apple of old. Microsoft is still Microsoft where they are playing games as usual, however the DoJ rattled them. I think it finally sunk in that they are a huge company. (Yes it sound like a DUH idea, but companies that grow faster then their culture can grow think that something that a small company would get away with is still no big deal.) As such there is a certain amount of humbleness that, as lame as it sounds, is occurring at MS. Call it a maturing process if you will.
Meanwhile Apple has yet to feel any type of slap down, either from its customer base or the DoJ and this emboldens them in a way that even MS never was. When your user base will, by and large, never question your actions and put faith simply based on their old slogan "think different" how could they not think they can do no wrong?
So I would ask this: who is ultimately responsible for things such as this NDA's for rejection letters? Apple? Or its user base for not calling shenanigans on their policies and forcing them to realize that they need to stop being ***hats.
Whatever. Its 12AM, and no doubt someone somewhere will make an excuse for Apple, because after all; they can do no wrong.