Once again, Apple has fallen back on its developer guidelines as a reason for pulling an app that caused a public-relations catastrophe.
In just about 24 hours after a letter of complaint from an Israeli minister, it removed the Third Intifada app from the iTunes store.
“We removed this app from the App Store because it violates the developer guidelines by being offensive to large groups of people,” an Apple spokesman said Wednesday evening.
The same reason was cited as cause for removal of the “gay cure” app back in March after it unleashed a huge protest.
The question remains: doesn’t anyone at Apple read these guidelines first?
You could (and for the purpose of discussion, please do) substitute or Baby Shaker, iSlam Muhammad — both apps Apple had to remove after a predictable public outcry.
It’d be so much easier if they vetted the apps instead of approving, then yanking them.
Nicole Martinelli is a San Francisco freelance writer who heads up Cult of Mac Magazine, our weekly publication available on iTunes. You can find her on Twitter and Google+. If you’re doing something new, cool and Apple-related, email her.
80 responses to “Apple pulled Intifada app for “violating developer guidelines””
apple dane good go israel !
apple did good go israel !
It is sad how Apple tries to violate freedom of speech !
Another weak move by Apple. Almost anything could offend a large group of people including Israel’s actions against the Palestinians. As long as an app does not promote violence then Apple should leave it alone.
** It’d be so much easier if they vetted the apps instead of approving, then yanking them.
So you are suggesting that Apple decide in advance which apps may or may not be “offensive to large groups of people”…
I thought that everyone wanted Apple to be LESS Orwellian ?? Do you really want Apple deciding what constitutes “moral” or “offensive” in advance – can they really speak for all people everywhere of all ethnicities or religions ???
I agree with pulling the app pos-complaint but think that it is a slippery slope to try to “judge” the offensiveness of such software in advance of release…
It’d be much easier if they were truthful about the guidelines and changed it to word “Offensive to groups we agree with.”
Apple can remove what it wants when it wants.. its their store. Heck, even Google is now doing this in their supposed “open” store – and where is the whining about that?
Listen morons, if you put up billions of $ to set up the environment Apple did you can be free to make up your own rules as you want.
It amazes me how many of you are so hypocritical about the app store. Its Apples house, deal with it or move along….
Fail.
Feel free to put up your own app store and run it by your own rules…
So you think every store should be compelled to sell the Qur’an? And an Islamic bookstore should be required to sell Dianetics, the Christian Bible, and my memoires because I’m entitled to freedom of speech? Your understanding of freedom of speech is fundamentally flawed.
i agree with the removal of this app and of the gay cure. the app store is not a place to share/publicize your political veiws especially when A) they are an offend to someone choice of lifestyle and sexuality and B) when they call for destruction of a country.
both in my opinion are not a place for the app store.
It’s Apple’s house. The Gnome is right. Freedom of speech? Pleaseeeee….it’s not a “public” place. Do you yell in a library? Drop the F-bomb in a church? Scream bloody murder in a movie? Make your own schedule for classes? Follow the rules and if you don’t like it, don’t use it.
“A) they are an offend to someone choice of lifestyle and sexuality and…..” — CHOICE?!? Really?
In my opinion yes.
this app wasnt viloent at all its about israel occupation and crimes aginst children,women,students in palestine freedoom of speech people want to live in peace with rights just like evrey one on this earth idk why apple toke it off i guess steve jobs got scared from israel any way and once again hollywood and the media is controlled by the jews its a fact god bless palestine and live forever
I think that Apple can do whatever they want. It’s their store. It’s not a free and open market place for people to post whatever they please. I feel there is nothing wrong with the rules Apple has in place currently.
I haven’t always been happy about all the apps they’ve removed. In some cases I feel Apple has been selective in the past. Allowing certain things that should be banned, and yet banning others for containing things that some allowed apps still have and are still on the app store.
Sexuality isn’t a choice. I honestly don’t see how anyone can say it is. Let’s not open up that can of worms. You’ll lose, I assure you.
So millions of people the world over made/make the “choice” to live hated, ostracized, beaten, murdered, jailed, tortured, maligned; most without basic rights and access to care and equality because of a “choice”.
I see……………
Freedom of speech applies to public venues. You can say anything you want in your home, or out on the sidewalk. You can’t however say anything you want in a private venue, which is what the App Store is. It’s owned and controlled by Apple. They make the rules.
Any other forum online, including this one, is the exact same way. They can moderate whatever they want. It’s their private space.
Let’s not open it. I’m not here to discuss sexual orientation, i actually come here to read thing in relation to “the cult”
Yet you decided to make a post and claim that these people made a choice about their lifestyle of sexuality. You opened it, not anyone else.
Did you wake up one day and decide… Gee, I think I’m going to choose women over men? Or is it just something that occurs naturally to you. The same way that it occurs with gay and lesbian men and women? Or maybe even the same way that it occurs in nature with other animals. Maybe you should google the topic next time instead of coming here and spouting off your “opinion”.
Nice retro-active editing… I see Nicole’s “Opinions” have been edited out as originally she closed with “It’d be so much easier if they vetted the apps instead of approving, then yanking them”…
Now it’s a news article instead of an opinion piece as it should have been to start with…
sad world we live in. palestinians have no say. to most of you they are worthless animals and you care less about them, its all about the spoiled illegal state of israel.
israel can’t hide its crimes anymore and you should be ashamed to defend such monsters government.
palestine belongs to : arabs jews, arab christians and arab muslims (majority) all these israeli Europeans should go back to where they came from, palestine was living in peace for 1400 years till israel occupied the land 60 years ago.
that is correct
Viva Palestina. Down with Israhell the state of terror.
P.S. I still love you, Apple, that’s a different story.
Everyone whose commented on this thread is a brain dead nut job.
1. If the Arab world wants the rest of the world to take them seriously then stop fucking planting bombs and running planes into buildings.
2. It doesn’t matter who started what or who wants to finish it, Israel is every bit as guilty of crimes as the terrorists groups who terorize the world.
3. The real enemy isn’t the general public which comprises both sides it’s the power’s that control the flow of weapons and money. In short all you idiots FROM BOTH SIDES are pawns of the fat rich politicians who use your children as cannon fodder so they can maintain their own power base.
4. Until you all finally decide to use your brains and STOP SACRIFICING YOUR KIDS for a bunch of cowardly leaders who only care about themselves there will never be any peace.
Final comment:
I’m no Muslim Jew Pagan or some flaky dumbass who chants at some crystal I’m only a fallen Christian who tries to do the right thing when he can. Reading these stupid comments the only thing I can think of is a certain passage from the Good Book. That passage is very simple and straight forward:
THOU SHALT NOT KILL
You want to please God follow his commandment. You don’t follow his commandment and instead choose to distort the word of God then you have blasphemed in the eyes of God. You only have to read the Bible Quaran or Torah to know what happens to those who distort the word of God.
Now show some intelligence and smarten up you bunch of stiff necked idiots.
I’m hoping my app isn’t in the firing line next:
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app…
no, it looks like your app is giving news in Gaza. Nothing wrong with that!
really? go to their website and read their stuff, their songs etc (you might need the help of google translate :-) which isn’t perfect but you’ll get the idea.
The palis made the choice to freely democratically elect a terrorist group to represent them that hates Israel and does nothing to advance peace so those in gaza can live a non-jailed, non-tortured life.
They get what they deserve for voting for murderous terrorists.
End of lesson for you.
Wrong. Israel belongs to the Jews and always has. Let the palis go to their real homeland of Jordan.
You must think the intifada is so that the palis can just hand out coffee and donuts. How insulated and naive you are.
Don’t mean to offend, in fact quite the opposite.
Calling for a 3rd Intifada is promoting violence.
Perhaps the US should stop killing thousands of Arabs and helping another country (clue: it’s located in a place that was once upon a time called Palestine) to do the same.
There is no evidence that the app called for ‘the destruction of a country’, or indeed was anti-semitic. No attributions were provided by the Israeli government minister as far as I am aware. The violence that did take place on Nakba Day was all Israeli you will recall. They killed quite a lot of people. Oh, but I get it, they were all Palestinian refugees trying to return to their land so it doesn’t matter.
Lies, lies and more lies. The pro-Israel crowd are increasingly isolated, hence the hysteria… and lies.
I am offended by Angry Birds. If I started a petition, how many people’s signatures would it take to yank Angry Birds by violating “the developer guidelines by being offensive to large groups of people”.
A lot of people are offended by Fox News. How many people have to offended before the Fox News app is violating “the developer guidelines by being offensive to large groups of people”?
I could go on and on. What’s offensive to many is not offensive to many others. What is the true determining factor?
Interesting that the folks that run Jordan said that Jordan is Palestine and vice versa. Oh how the deniers love to re-write history…
Except there was nothing in the app that called for the destruction of a country. I read Arabic- it was just news of settler attacks and other issues Palestinians live with daily. Some patriotic songs and videos (again- focusing on Palestine and their yearning for their homeland- NOT destroying Israel), and a twitter feed.
Israel asked for it ro be removed for political reasons and the Zionist machine moved into action without even bothering to look at what the app said.
@Gary McFarlane
An another dumbass chooses to throw out his two cents before thinking. READ MY POST IN ITS ENTIRETY AND STOP AND THINK ABOUT WHAT I’M SAYING. If you see me protecting the U.S. then please quote where I’m waving the Yankee flag.
THOU SHALT NOT KILL…. PERIOD
Stop and think about what those 4 little words mean and the far reaching implications it has on our society. It doesn’t matter who does it or from what country he’s from IT’S WRONG AND ALL OUR GOVERNMENTS HAVE BEEN GUILTY OF MURDER at one time or another.
Idiot