There’s been a lot of hate for the App store approval process over the past… well, ever since the App Store surfaced. It seems like anybody who has ever touched the SDK has a bad word to say about the draconian Apple iron curtain. The iPad’s recent release has incited similar levels vitriol – it’s closed, Apple is taking over the world, blah blah.
Apple seems to be blocking applications that duplicate native iPhone apps, applications that use Apple imagery, logos or trademarks, and apps that are offensive. I can see how some of this might be frustrating for someone who hasn’t read the documentation properly before they start working. I kid, I kid! I’m sure it comes as a nasty surprise.
This isn’t the only reason behind the approval process. In fact, I don’t think it’s even the main reason behind the approval process. One reason is to protect Apple’s patents trademarks. You can bitch and moan about this one if you want, but it’s fairly standard. If people have your image on their stuff, your brand is vulnerable. You don’t want to go down this route; Apple has a big legal team, and you are not a lawyer.
But I digress; the other reason is that Apple checks every application to make sure it works. By “works”, I mean: it opens, runs, and doesn’t crash too badly. If it’s a game, it doesn’t have to actually be any good – but at least it works and is playable by anybody who owns an iPhone or iPod Touch.
Remember that we are not the average user. Just like the iPad, the iPhone is also targeted at end-users. The end user doesn’t understand bugs, or approval processes. They understand works, and doesn’t-work. If something doesn’t-work, it instantly tarnishes the device. The shine is gone, the thin veneer of novelty wears away, and the dirty, buggy reality is revealed. You can watch it happen. In effect, they’re screening applications for suckiness.
So why do I love the approval process? Because it means that every application is tested and approved by Apple before I can buy it. I like to think of it as though Apple is the Maître d’ of a fancy, expensive restaurant, tasting every dish before allowing it to be sold to his customers. The more picky he is, the better the food will have to be.
Before I spend my hard-earned bling on a game, or an app, I want to know that it works properly. I want to know that somebody at Apple has tried the damn thing. Apple is actually making itself responsible for the user’s experience on the phone, whether on third-, second- or first-party applications. Can you imagine the kind of shit you’d be able to buy if they opened the floodgates and let any old developer release any old crap onto the App Store? There’s a store icon on the homepage of the phone, for heaven’s sake.
I guess the bottom line is that the people who benefit from the process are the ones who know nothing about it – the end-user – and so they never say anything about it. That means that all we hear about are the developers’ stories – and at that, only the negative ones. This selection bias is why the approval process has such a bad reputation. The poor thing needs a friend. Look, I’m sure you’ve had a bad experience with the App Store’s approval process, but try and remember us, the end-users. We love your apps, and we love our iPhones. The process isn’t perfect, I’m sure, but it’s there for a reason.
I am an iPhone end-user, and I love the approval process.
(I was going to write an article about the iPad, but there are way too many already.)
Thank you. Finally someone agrees with what has been my view since the beginning. The only thing I think should be a little more open is apps that 'duplicate functionality'. For example, I think Mozilla should have the ability to compete with Safari on the iPhone just to encourage Apple to do a little better (and Safari is only an example). Things like a media player that scrobbles to Last.fm would be nice too.
about 1 month ago