4.3 Design Spam (Suggestion for Apple)

App Store Distribution & Marketing App Review App Review

andrefjesus OP

Created Aug ’17

Replies 27

Boosts 1

Views 23k

Participants 24

Hello, I would like to make an appeal on behalf of small businesses around the world.

My name is André, I'm a developer and an entrepreneur.

When Apple was created its biggest mission was to bring technology to everyone. I'm in love with this ideology. Technology for all in an easy and usual way.

Many development companies work hard to generate jobs, move their country's economy, realize dreams, and bring quality technology to users.

Currently I received a call from Simone, from Apple's review team (case: 1769784) - she was very caring, polite and professional.

Simone told me that my applications are outside of Apple's guidelines, my case is item 4.3 Design Spam. She suggested that I create a container application to solve the problem.

As I accepted being an Apple developer I should suit the guidelines. However, it is a guideline that goes against information democracy. Brands do not want to share spaces with competitors. Example is Apple itself. Apple has concept stores around the world that only sell Apple products. Because Apple does not want to mingle with competitors. Our customers do not either. They want to have the same feature, the same template, but they want the app with the logo and the colors of it. Same as Apple. We could have a single mobile device and the user chooses which operating system to use. It would be much easier for all users. But you would never accept that. They would not accept because no one accepts. Because each company owns its brand to be able to work. This is called democracy.

I have read in forums (https://forums.developer.apple.com/message/240376#240376) and websites (https://www.reddit.com/r/iosdev/comments/6g9jf2/changes_to_app_store_review_guidelines_leave_me/) that developers and companies Are upset with Apple and because of item 4.3, and I'm sorry, this item is nonsense. What is the problem of a development company creating an application with great features and selling to companies that have similar services and can not afford an exclusive application. The cost of development gets lower and everyone can have an application. The company is happy that it can release its application to its customers, the developer is happy because it is democratizing the technology and generating jobs and Apple wins even more users. Please do not be the new dictators.

Our company develops applications for supermarkets and everyone loves them. You receive every day the offers from the market that you are a customer. Have health tips. Shopping list. You can share offers with friends. Get reminders about hot pie that just came out. Is not cool? The user relates to the brand you already know for years. Unlike a container application that the user does not yet know and needs to configure to choose which market he wants to receive information about. With the exclusive application and already installed and already has advantages. It is very cool.

Let users choose what is good or not good for them. The fact that the User has the right to delete an application from his device, ie "information democracy". Let the users exercise this democracy.

Let companies grow, an idea, create an exclusive plan for development companies that want to make similar applications available to the same industry and cover it. We only pay 99 dollars a year. For example: my company would pay $ 499 to have this account - "Apple Developer Business".

"You may face a mistake as a ******** to be forgotten, or as a result that points a new direction."

Steve Jobs

Thank you.

André

Boost

KMT OP

Oct ’17

Interesting feedback, thanks, but until someone comes up with a supporting element that involves helping Apple to sell more hardware (what devs can do for apple, vs., what Apple can do for devs), those points only serve to outline why so many devs harbor misplaced expections, I think.

DylanXing OP

Oct ’17

We have the same experience, a large number of app in China because 4.3 was shelved or rejected, some developers commissioned a lawyer to appeal to the China State Administration for Industry and Commerce. I think Apple's abuse of the hands of the right to deprive developers and users of the right.

claveyj OP

Mar ’18

Oh my.... and I thought I was the only one having this problem with Apple

I have four Apps

PoolAppLive, DartsAppLive, SnookerAppLive and LeagueAppLive, all have different features, logos, text and all are marketed brands.

All use a core scoring feature (obviously)

All these were on the App Store before this 4.3 policy was introduced or changed.

Now Apple wants me to produce one App that has an initial menu to pick one of the sports

Coding this is easy enough, but why would I want to do this?

Each App has it's own identity and brand by design. Each is linked to a customer website , for example mktpl.poolapplive.com each has been advertised seperately at cost to myself. I want customers to find my App by simply typing in the brand name as they already do on both Android and iOS

I am not spamming. I find this really quite insulting, if it wasn't for developers like myself Apple would be selling their devices

We also pay for this service (unlike other app stores)

I agree spamming should not be allowed, but this is not spamming

I will pursue this until they change their policy to include common sense.

chuckc192000 OP

Mar ’18

They most likely won't change their policies due to protests from a few indy developers. They can easily survive (and thrive) without some (or all) of the indy developers.

claveyj OP

Mar ’18

Unfortunately my business wont survive, I can't afford to spend further months time and money, just because Apple on a whim decided to trim their App Store without any consideration to us.

All four of my Apps are now in limbo, urgent fixes are ignored. Customers now wont get their new functionality

All because they want to trim out the real culprits who do actually spam the stores with duplicated apps (games and stupid Apps that just advertise their own web pages and rubbish stuff like that)

Proper designed Business Apps like mine are suffering becauseof their blanket non common sense approach.

Apple need to urgently rethink

Shrey28 OP

Jul ’18

Seriously bro, this is what gets me mad and upset because my game doesn't even look like any of the games on the market and it gets rejected because of guideline 4.3, and on the other hand there are thousands of apps already on the app store that are spams and copycats of other hit games. This is seriously terrible!

xtizer OP

Mar ’19

This seems to still be an on going thing years later,

can any one give any solutions to how they proceeded (well other than losing there business)

naticio OP

Mar ’21

I agree. Apple thought process is:
"we have many supermarkets already, we cannot new ones because they offer the similar functions, so let's reject this small supermarket and let Walmart grow bigger"

jsadev OP

Jan ’23

5 years ago and still a thing.. They truly don't care. Months of hard work gets rejected, just because they think there are enough apps like this. This is simply giving preferential treatment to competitors and stopping newcomer to get successful. Too bad.

Khaosk OP

Mar ’23

There seems to be an uptick in recent comments regarding this issue, I wonder if Apple has renewed this behavior lately. Two of my games have been stuck in spam hell, despite the fact that I worked hard on making it work in the Apple system, the store pages, and worked directly with the team to make sure all my in app purchases worked, including giving them detailed instructions on how to trigger every single in app purchase, as if they were my QA team.

I'm actually wondering if we can't get a group together to at least threaten some kind of class action. It seems odd that Apple can charge $99 dollars a year to develop on their ecosystem, and then pick and choose which apps get on their app store (not pertaining to adult or mature content, but rather, simply finding preference to whomever or whatever companies it chooses). If Apple got rid of the membership fee, they'd probably have a better case. I'll do some research. Email me at kugala_bugala_at_hotmail.com if you'd like to give me your story. It would help a lot if we want to get this fixed.

CryptokLLC OP

Jun ’23

Just got hit with this on the 2nd submitted review.

14 months of development down the tube for hopes of being on iOS.

Meanwhile 500+ downloads on Google Playstore in 2 weeks so far.

No idea how to proceeed as we will NOT be changing the ENTIRE app for Google and iOS just to please Apple...

jsadev OP

Sep ’23

Here we go again!

A bigger company copied some of my ideas from my android app since apple is still rejecting.

The redesinged it a little bit to fit 4.3 Design: Spam and got approved a couple of weeks ago.

Bad enough.. so I redesinged my App the same way and resubmitted it. And guess what.. Still rejected because of 4.3 Design: Spam.

THIS IS UNFAIR TREATMENT! THIS IS FU*CKING NOT OKAY! I am so mad right now. I have a meeting with a lawyer tomorrow. You should do the same!