Apple: Don’t You Dare Sell iPhone Apps Outside of the Store

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is really starting to prove that they are not a very open company.  Apple wants to keep all of their hardware and software closed within one ecosystem and they have final say on who is allowed in it.  This is especially the case for the App Store where Apple has been notorious for rejecting applications left and right.  Apple’s strongest competitor, the Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android, will not require an approval process for the applications listed in their future application store. 

Apple most recently blocked an application called Podcaster.  Podcaster was a way to play streaming podcasts through a site called Podcaster.fm.  Apple did not approve it for the App Store and stated that “Since Podcaster assists in the distribution of podcasts, it duplicates the functionality of the Podcast section of iTunes.”  Okay, so Apple did not approve it because of iTunes.  So what does the developer do with all the time that would otherwise be wasted?  The developer decided to distribute his application on his own website, nextdayoff.com.

Apple did not like that either so they blocked new users from being able to add it to their iPhones or iPods.  “Apple has banned me from making new provisions. That means if you signed up before
9/23/2008, you can still install and use the app,” stated the Podcaster developer.  if users signed up for the application before September 23, they can still install it.

MacRumors also points out that Apple is now closing e-mails to developers with a note that says: THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS MESSAGE IS UNDER NON-DISCLOSURE.  So if you get any e-mails from Apple, you developers better keep your mouth shut.

Related posts:

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2. How Apple Can Mitigate Developer Frustration
3. Steve Jobs: “It Was a Mistake To Launch MobileMe At The Same Time As iPhone 3G, iPhone 2.0 Software & The App Store”
4. Piper Jaffray States That Application Store Could Increase Apple Sales By $1.2 Billion Market in 2009
5. Third Party Apps Coming Back To The iPhone In February, But Are Limited In Nature