Monday, January 12, 2015

Overcast Rejected for Listing Competing Podcast Apps

Marco Arment:

Well, Overcast linking to competing apps is over. I knew it would get rejected eventually.

I always knew the feature was living on the edge of this rule’s interpretation.

This is what the list in question looked like. I think it was genuinely useful.

Overcast was rejected for violating Rule 2.25:

Apps that display Apps other than your own for purchase or promotion in a manner similar to or confusing with the App Store will be rejected

There is also Rule 2.26:

Apps may display and recommend apps other than your own only if the collection is designed for a specific approved need (e.g. health management, aviation, accessibility, etc.) or provides significant added value for a specific group of customers, or they will be rejected

He’s not going to appeal the rejection, though:

I might “win” on appeal, but it would always be a risk for future updates, and it’s simply not worth delaying bugfixes any further.

Update (2015-01-18): Kirk McElhearn:

This is pretty surprising. I don’t see why Apple would not allow a developer to link to other apps; I’m pretty sure I’ve seen apps that try and get you to buy other apps by the same developer. The only difference here is that Arment was helping you find the best podcast app for you by sharing links to apps that aren’t his.

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