app rejected because media player has album art!?

App Store Distribution & Marketing App Review App Review

opswhisperer OP

Created Oct ’15

Replies 17

Boosts 0

Views 6.6k

Participants 13

My app has previously been approved twice with no isses. This last update I get the following

8.5 - Apps may not use protected third party material such as trademarks, copyrights, patents or violate 3rd party terms of use. Authorization to use such material must be provided upon request

8.5 Details

Your app includes content or features that resemble one or multiple third-party mark(s) without the necessary authorization.

- Album cover art

My app is a MEDIA PLAYER . . . . is cover art suddenly illegal? Either the songs are owned by the user or they're streaming from Apple Music AND I provide a link to purchase any songs they don't own in accordance with the Search API TOS

This is my first app and I'm having a hard time understanding the arbitrary nature of this process. There are hundreds, probably thousands, of media apps in the store with cover art in the screenshots.

Boost

D0nMalte OP

Mar ’23

I don't know if this wasn't the case back than or the review progress is even more flawed than I thought, but I got through with my Screenshots with this answer to their message:

"In the App Store Review Guidelines 4.5.2 (ii) Apple Sites and Services (https://developer.apple.com/app-store/review/guidelines/#apple-sites-and-services) the guideline says: "Cover art and other metadata may only be used in connection with music playback or playlists (including App Store screenshots displaying your app’s functionality)"

Several of my screenshots show playlist covers (not album covers) created, owned and provided by Apple Music not by the artist who is on the image. The playlist covers are provided by Apple Music via their free AppleMusic API and the framework MusicKit. As you can see under the section 7 "Apple Approval" in the Apple Music Identity Guide (https://www.apple.com/itunes/marketing-on-music/identity-guidelines.html#apple-approval) "Most marketing materials don’t require approval by Apple." "

Maybe it helps for the future people who search for this :)

pke_apple OP

May ’23

@D0nMalte didnt they complain about property violations for streaming 3rd party content (5.2.3 Audio/Video downloading)? I am streaming a publicly available ShoutCast stream and they want see written permission to use this steam.