Apple Wants Android Mention Deleted from App Store Entry

Ed Sutherland ()

Apple Wants Android Mention Deleted from App Store Entry It is pretty clear Apple has declared a silent war on Google. CEO Steve Jobs allegedly has mocked the Mountain View, Calif. company’s well-known “Do No Evil” mantra and even blames the Internet giant for trying to “kill” Cupertino’s iconic iPhone. However, that animosity appears to have spilled over into Apple’s iPhone App Store approval process. Apple asked a developer to delete mention Google’s Android in an application’s description.

In an email to the developer of “Flash of Genius: SAT Vocab” developer Tim Novikoff, Apple wrote “it would be appropriate to remove ‘Finalist in Google’s Android Developer’s Challenge!’ from the application’s description.

Apple wrote that the edit was required to “avoid an interruption in the availability” of the flash card application.

The note from Apple said the app’s description, which also includes other usual promotional material, “contains inappropriate or irrelevant information.” However, the company is likely not objecting to the developer mentioning inclusions in Newsday or various iPhone design books.

After removing the offending Google Android mention, Novikoff said he plans to contact Apple about a way to mention his top 10 finish in the Android developer contest while not raising any red flags.

The Android Marketplace is the App Store’s nearest competitor, with at least 20,000 apps. Apple recently announced it had passed the 3 billion App Store download mark.

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[Via Silicon Alley Insider and Flash of Genius Blog]

11 comments »

About the author

Ed Sutherland

Ed Sutherland is a veteran technology journalist who first heard of Apple when they grew on trees, Yahoo was run out of a Stanford dorm and Google was an unknown upstart. Since then, Sutherland has covered the whole technology landscape, concentrating on tracking the trends and figuring out the finances of large (and small) technology companies.

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  • Gazoobee

    The description makes it sound like Apple is directly blackmailing the developer to remove the mention when this isn’t the case. This just makes me think that the author here, (or more likely the developer that sent him the info), is being pretty biased.

    Therefore … several giant grains of salt necessary with this report IMO. ;)

  • GreyFoxTech

    What grain of salt, Gaz? They clearly stated:

    Apple wrote that the edit was required to “avoid an interruption in the availability” of the flash card application.

    That’s exactly what Apple was doing. Apple fanboys are like those three monkeys when it’s pointed out the only difference between the behavior of Apple and Microsoft is the fact that Apple is actually MORE weaselly.

  • http://www.ipadforums.net John Gonzalez

    if Apple keeps this up I can smell lawsuits coming for unfair competitive practices.

    Jesus that’s ridiculous.

  • MrUnbiased

    I’m not a fanboy, but Apple is within its rights to not have their direct competitors mentioned in their products and services.

    It’d be like a product commercial on NBC stating that it was the CBS 2009 product of the year.

  • http://answerguy.com Jeff Yablon

    Re: Mr. Unbiased’s comment: Sure, they are within their rights to not accept advertising from someone they compete with, or anyone else for that matter. This is different than that. It’s Apple trying to pretend that Android doesn’t exist (fine), and gagging others (not fine).

    Tell ya what: I write about Android all the time, and I have an iPhone App ( http://itunes.apple.com/hk/app/answer-guy-central/id349621537?mt=8 ). Maybe Apple would like to tell me I can’t do that?

    By the way: typically, one TV network DOES accept ads for things happening on others. The World has changed that way . . . just not Apple.

    This is disgusting.

    Jeff Yablon
    President & CEO
    Answer Guy and Virtual VIP Computer Support, Business Change Coaching and Virtual Assistant Services

    Answer Guy and Virtual VIP on Twitter

  • http://www.oak-tree.us/blog Rob Oakes

    “I’m not a fanboy, but Apple is within its rights to not have their direct competitors mentioned in their products and services.”

    Except, they’re not. In this instance, this is not Apple’s product. Apple is providing a marketplace and the developer is providing the product. The usage of “Finalist in Android’s Developer Challenge” is appropriate advertising of the product. It is not an endorsement of the Android device or Google.

    I went back and read through the Developer terms and conditions. I couldn’t find any clause that would allow for Apple to pull an app because they disapprove of the marketing copy. The closest that I could find is the oft quoted line:

    “Applications must not contain any obscene, pornographic, offensive or defamatory content or materials of any kind (text, graphics, images, photographs, etc.) or other content or materials that in Apple’s reasonable judgment may be found objectionable by iPhone or iPod touch users.”

    Referring to a competitor’s design award simply does not qualify. Apple has violated their own terms and conditions. It’s not okay and Apple shouldn’t be allowed a pass.

  • Matt Gray

    Agree with Rob Oakes 100% on this!

    How dare they?!

    I long the day when the Android Marketplace and Android stamp down this silly app store and the iphone OS.

    Go Google!

  • John

    And now Apple have just drawn attention to it. If they had left it alone, it would not be a problem.

  • Montana Bob
  • NewJohnny

    22 updates?!? Gotta stay on top of those if you want to run with the cool crowd..

  • http://itampon.org/ iPad Forum

    How big is the android market right now? how many apps are in it?