In the wake of WWDC, Apple announced two changes in its relationship with developers, which relate to applications that violate the guidelines from the App Store. The validation team will no longer block updates to the apps in question if they are simple fixes. The second change is more profound: developers who wish can challenge a rule. Facebook used this mechanism for its Facebook Gaming app, without success. The app eventually came out, but cut off from its catalog of mini-games.
Another attempt was successful. Will Strafach, who created the app Guardian (firewall and VPN), had the bad surprise of to receive a request from Apple to withdraw one of the functions of the app, in this case the Day Pass. This in-app purchase unlocks all Guardian features for one day, for $ 1.09. Useful for securing traffic on your iPhone while traveling with unsecured Wi-Fi, for example.
Apple invoked the article 3.1.2 of guidelines, which affects subscriptions. The paragraph a provides that a subscription must last at least seven days. Problem: Not only does the Day Pass, as the name suggests, only last 24 hours, but above all… it’s an in-app purchase, not a subscription. On the strength of this argument, and to avoid losing this very popular feature among Guardian users, Will Strafach therefore decided to appeal for the new rules challenge mechanism.
The call was made on August 15, the developer has got successful this Saturday. The Day Pass will therefore remain present in the future version 2 of the application. Currently rule 3.1.2 does not reflect the change (will the subscription period be shortened to 24 hours?). Will Strafach, who usually doesn’t have his tongue in his pocket, this « pretty impressed ”By this novelty and by the lead time.
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