Apple Cracking Down on Mass Produced, Low Functionality Apps?
TechCrunch is reporting that companies who mass produce (or provide tools and templates for the mass production of) “cookie cutter” apps are hearing that they need to add differentiation and functionality or risk Apple not allowing them into the iTunes App Store. Jason Kincaid says:
Between the developers I spoke to, the consensus was this: Apple doesn’t appear to be opposed to ‘app generators’ and templates per se, but in the last month or so it has started cracking down on basic applications that are little more than RSS feeds or glorified business cards. In short, Apple doesn’t want people using native applications for things that a basic web app could accomplish. For some of these services that’s bad news, because that’s exactly the sort of application they produce; any new applications they submit are going to get rejected. But all hope isn’t lost for them, provided they can make their apps more useful.
Kincaid says Appmakr for one has taken suggestions from Apple to improve things like in-app purchases, instant notifications, offline access, and landscape viewing modes and describe the process as positive. Other services apparently haven’t had as much luck.
The move seems to be part of Apple’s ongoing efforts to increase the quality of the App Store experience and protect the brand. Much like the removal of sex-based apps last month, “cookie cutter” apps could seen as low value, sometimes verging on spam. For consumers it could result in a cleaner App Store and ultimately better apps (more than just re-packaged RSS feeds) but at the expense of quantity and choice. For developers, it’s likely another in a list of things they’ll consider before building on Apple’s platform.
If Apple is indeed working on revamping the mass produced app, what think you?
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maybe this’ll cute down on some of the cr@p in the store.
Well then apple. Why the sudden crackdown?
A welcome move by Apple.
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it’s about time. i’ll take quality over quantity any day.
I say kick em out! I am so tired of browsing through absolutely useless apps I can’t see straight! But as far as the sex based apps go, I just downloaded “69 positions” which is a sex app. So are they still in the process of removing thes apps because that’s not the only one I’ve seen recently.
Just asking…
Apple should have done this from the beginning.
I don’t develop what would be considered a template type app, so this would nit directly impact me, and, as a user, I certainly would not mind seeing less cookie cutter apps when lookingvthrough the store, but, as a developer, this is another arbitrary decision that makes me leery of Apple as a partner and long for the day when another platform catches up enough for me to be able to leave.
Virtuous: If Apple did that from the beginning, they couldn’t brag about having 140,000 apps in the AppStore. I tell you, I struggle to find 4000 quality apps, let alone 140,000. Hopefully, Apple can remove the garbage and make it easier to find quality apps.
I’m totally, utterly in favor of it. I’d love to see a similar culling of the 124th copy of some public domain book and other similar apps as well.
I’m sure there are some who are of the “I didn’t say anything when they banned sex apps because I don’t make sex apps, but there was no one to say anything when they came for me” persuasion, but I know that I’d much, much rather have 20,000 quality apps without the other 120,000 largely useless ones, even if it did nail me as a developer some day.
Apple needs to raise the number of app screens and yes weeding out is a good thing but where is the line drawn. I think the next weeding out needs to be on the front of making app devs use key words in thier apps to make them easier to find when searching or let us the consumer, add our own keywords.
This would be awesome… if Apple allowed an unofficial App store. What’s the definition of a useless app? Something that “copies” what Apple has done? Maybe something Apple WILL do? Who knows…
All the crap apps are a problem. I don’t get paid the big bucks so I don’t really know what a good solution would be. But I prefer this a action to no action at all. Hopefully they’ll stumble on a good solution soon.
Finally! Too many crap, apps watering down the app store as it is.
I hope more of those retarted sex apps are removed. I dont think anybody would care if they were all just removed
It’s about time. This has been a rant for me for a long time. Less crap please. If they didn’t do anything there would be a millon apps with only about a thousand that are worth anything and the rest are junk.
About time I’d say.
P.
So Apple take advantage of these apps to market the Iphone saying they have 100k of apps. . . but turns around and focuses on quality now?
One thing about Apple .. they are great business people …
I will say I definitely will be happier with less bad apps, but what determines a bad app. Something that I may find useless and annoying 10 other people might find hilarious, enjoyable and a great time killer. Where is the line drawn? There will be 2 possible outcomes from this, either we get fewer new apps with better overall funtionality or Apple begins to lose the small developers and smaller companies from their platform and drive them to Android, BB, or Win Phone 7. I can see in the beginning it being the prior but in the long run as they get even more controlling moving toward the later.
My other question is at what point does the locked down app store and lack of any other way (not including jailbreaking) to get an application on YOUR device start trending on monopoly/fair business practices. I understand its Apple’s platform and they can do what they want with it, which as far as the app store goes makes sense, but the fact that you can’t get anything for your device any other way than through apple is anti-competitive. Microsoft bundles a browser with Windows and BAM! lawsuit. Apple sells 100 million App store friendly devices, owns 90+% of the mobile app market (guess-timation numbers, please correct if there are actual #’s available) and no one blinks an eye. What apple does in their store is up to them, as annoying as it may be, but at what point does the platform become large enough that the lack of any competition becomes a legal issue?
In the end I ‘like’ my iPhone, but haven’t loved it in a long time. the interface is stale, the constant closing and opening apps to do simple things, and the multitude of other little annoyances has turned me off of the platform. Were it not for jailbreaking, which continues to get more difficult, I would have switched a long time ago. but hey at least it plays music well.
@Lol@Fanbois,
my guess would be that in packaging Internet explorer with windows it was an attempt to dominate the pc market. Apple is not releasing the app store on all mobile phones released and all mobile phones don’t need to run on iPhone OS. Apple owns the actual hard and software therefore you are correct in saying they can do what they want.
If Apple wants the AppStore to look a certain way, more power to them. Choosing the iPhone means closed platform and dealing with the tyranny of Apple.
I must say that I recently bought a DROID (still have AT&T and my iPhone) and the DROID is no iPhone killer. There are cool features but nothing that would ever make someone who has used an iPhone for 3 years completely bail on it.
The marketplace is full of even crappier apps, a lot of them are buggy and customers are constantly complaining in marketplace that something within said app is not working or it crashes consistently.
Be happy for Apples tyranny or else we’ll end up like marketplace.
@Greg
I understand your point, but still think the Microsoft analogy can apply. Apple is effectively doing the same thing as microsoft by locking people into a single piece of software to manage their music/apps/and now books and they prevent any other competitive software from interfacing with the devices. the only thing that has really kept Apple safe on the music front is that you can still buy Music on CD from other providers (Amazon, etc.) and import them into iTunes. This still allowed competitive sales and iTunes was just the method for syncing instead of the only gateway to purchase and sync to the device.
This would be like Microsoft or Sony opening dedicated stores and no longer allowing Best Buy, Walmart, Amazon or any other retail store to sell their games. Apple’s success with the App store is already starting to change the methodology of these companies as they both have adopted a variation of the Apple model and sell more and more things only through there channel and thus cutting off the competition at retail. When you have no other place to buy something the consumer has very little power to make a difference.
The heart of the issue for me is not so much with how Apple runs their store (although everyone can agree some set guidelines would be helpful) it’s that they are the only portal into the iDevice world. The lack of another option for buying Apps for my iDevice is concerning as Apple’s marketshare continues to grow and the trend for these closed systems with only one place to purchase software seems to only be increasing.
@ lol@Fanbois
i couldnt agree with you more. for me it seems that Apple has become the NEW Microsoft. That does not mean in market share in the Mobile/Music arena only, but in the distribution of the content of these products. I believe, that if Apple continues in the manner that it has, trying to bully their weight around on anyone they Feel that they can, than Appple will face the same fate as Microsoft, Anti-Trust trials and all. And not even the iPhone toting judge will be able to save them.
I always pushed for apple to get bigger than they where 10 years ago, and lets not forget that Microsoft even Bailed this, than pathetic, company out. Take the scawney kid that was being bullied for years and years in grade school, and than buffs up in high school next to the now scrawny bully, the original kid will be a worse tyrant than the original bully.
Point is, apple has the power to do whatever they like in their store. However they are NOT allowed to prevent another store from opening to sell their products.
A welcome move from Apple. I have personally experienced purchasing an App with their description and end up with crap. Apple users would be excited about this move from Apple by focusing more on quality and not quantity.