App Store Conspiracies
I'm really not a fan of Apple's App Store policies. This is not a revolutionary statement. Ever since the App Store launched, the 30 percent don't-call-it-a-tax has felt pretty crappy to anyone developing on the platform. But all of that cash can't seem to fund decent App Store review infrastructure, with good apps rejected all the time for no reason and absolutely terrible apps making it through all the time. How can they be raking in billions of dollars, mostly from gambling apps for childeren, and not be able to pay people to properly filter out the garbage?
But, then (Christopher Atlan, via Michael Tsai):
My sources tell me Google has successfully inserted provocateur agents inside Apples App Review team. They are exceeding their goal to discourage indie devs, making these remarkable apps for the Apple platforms.
So this kind of conspiracy theory stuff is probably wrong. But it's believable, kind of. At least I want it to feel believable. I'd certainly prefer that the App Store to be a good place to distribute software. But it's not. As to why, it's easier to imagine that a few bad folks are ruining it than acknowledge that the whole place might be rotten. You can get rid of a few bad people.
But, really. Is App Review being torpedoed by secret Android fans on the inside? I think the simpler explanation is probably right. The incentives for App Review being terrible just outweigh the benefits of fixing it. Thirty percent of gambling apps for children, scams, and all of that adds up to a lot.