Monday, November 5, 2018

Apple Legal Doesn’t Like Domain Redirect

Ryan Jones:

Apple’s lawyers sent me an IP infringement letter about http://www.manageapplesubscriptions.com 🙄.

I sent a… stern reply (one example shown). But I’m not going to renew the domain, just to avoid this crap. Sorry I don’t have the time to fight it.

It’s too bad because this was addressing a real issue: that Apple’s official link to manage app subscriptions is unwieldy and hard to find.

Previously: Apple Pulling High-Grossing Scammy Subscription Apps Off the App Store, App Stores No Longer Listing All In-App Purchases, Is There Hope for the Mac App Store?, The Mojave Marzipan Apps.

If Apple were to place the link to subscription management somewhere more obvious in the Settings app, perhaps under the iTunes & App Store section—or better yet, right in the top-line Apple ID, iCloud, iTunes & App Store—that would be a big improvement. Adding an easier-to-find link in the iTunes Store and App Store apps would also be welcome.

Fortunately, developers can help make finding subscription settings easier, too.

Interesting contrast: Google Play’s subscriptions link is front and centre

Where was that thread re: “super easy” subscription management on the App Store again? Got a sad addendum here…

User felt they had to cancel their credit card to stop a subscription. (And we get a 1-star, of course.)

Max Seelemann:

We’re getting 1-star reviews every single day for stuff that’s beyond our control. Other examples:

- it’s basically impossible to update apps no longer on sale: 1 star
- the store says “free” for an app that requires a subscription: 1 star

Apple recently made a change (seems iOS 12.1.4 and 12.2 beta) to make it easier to manage subscriptions for iOS apps.

Now you just need to open the App Store, tap your profile, and choose ‘Manage Subscriptions’.

2 Comments RSS · Twitter

[…] In the wake of several apps abusing subscriptions, Charles Arthur put together a well-illustrated guide to finding the app subscriptions management screen on iOS. It isn’t in the App Store, nor can you search for it in Settings because it’s inside of a web view. Ryan Jones previously registered a single-serving domain that redirected to the subscription management screen, but Apple legal didn’t like that. […]

[…] The Mac App Store version is $25/year subscription with a 7-day free trial, compared with $45 for the direct sale version, which had a launch sale but no upgrade pricing. They aim to have a new major version every 2–3 years. It also looks like Apple has a new link for managing App Store subscriptions. […]

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