Black Friday? Apple Pulls Numerous Sex Apps *Updated*

CUPERTINO, Calif.—Sex is throwing everyone for a loop. The press is painfully uncomfortable covering the subject—i.e., Tiger Woods—and Apple is twisting itself into a lather trying to find the right policy to employ for sex-related iPhone apps. The latest development points to an ongoing evolution (confusion?) within the company, with increasing reports that a significant number of apps have been removed from the App Store while other similar ones remain available. 

*Update* TopBucks reports that it has had an app removed from Apple's App Store. Comment from the company is below. iPhone apps iTeagan (Presley) and iEva (Angelina) also were removed. A comment from Brooklyn Corp, the developer of those two apps, is below, as is a statement on the situation from app developer Grindhouse Mobile.

The story broke Thursday, when TechCruch reported that Wobble iBoobs, an app that was previously accepted for sale through the App Store and has reportedly been downloaded 970,000 times, had received a very recent email from Apple saying that the app has been removed from the store, pending changes to it that would align it with the new policy.

TechCruch posted the email that Wobble developer Jon Atherton said he received from Apple:

The App Store continues to evolve, and as such, we are constantly refining our guidelines. Your application, Wobble iBoobs (Premium Uncensored), contains content that we had originally believed to be suitable for distribution. However, we have recently received numerous complaints from our customers about this type of content, and have changed our guidelines appropriately.

We have decided to remove any overtly sexual content from the App Store, which includes your application.

Thank you for your understanding in this matter. If you believe you can make the necessary changes so that Wobble iBoobs (Premium Uncensored) complies with our recent changes, we encourage you to do so and resubmit for review.

Sincerely,
iPhone App Review

TC's Jason Kincaid wrote that he tried to download a few other sex-related apps—specifically, “Exotic Positions” and “Sexy Women”—but found they were no longer accessible.

“However, some applications with similar themes (‘Beautiful Boobs,’ ‘Sexy Girls Uncovered,’ and ‘Sex Strip’) worked,” he wrote. “All of these applications came with Apple’s ‘objectionable material’ warning that requires you to affirm that you’re over the age of 17. This may be a case of Apple picking and choosing which apps are too sexual, or they may still be figuring out which apps to pull (or the changes may not have propagated to all of Apple’s servers). There are reports on Twitter of other developers having their applications pulled as well.”

Over at Silicon Alley Insider, the new policy is being called Apple’s new “war on porn” and the removal of apps a “purge.”

“Apple has a history of making sudden changes to its policies and removing apps,” wrote Nick Saint, “but a developer we spoke to said that the scale of the current purge is unprecedented.

“On the Go Girls, for example, has had 17 apps removed so far,” he continued, “about half of its total portfolio. The latest notice came less than an hour ago, so the clean-up is still in full swing. Jens Ltd, another top adult developer, has only one app remaining.”

Saint says that developers were given no advance warning of the new policy, and no indication of why it was instigated. The emails, he reported, started going out Thursday. AVN has since learned that some developers were warned by phone of the impending policy change as early as Feb. 9 (see Brooklyn Corp comments below).

“This could be a major financial setback to adult app companies, most of which are very small,” warns Saint, who also reported that Apple had not replied to a request for clarification of a new and thus far confusing policy shift.

Over at ZDNet, Jason D. O'Grady is singing a similar refrain. "My problem is that Apple is applying its new decency and morality standards in a totally random and opaque fashion. If it removes one app, it should remove them all," he wrote. "When’s the madness going to stop at Apple?"

The company's lukewarm response thus far is unlikely to assuage critics of the new policy—whatever it is. "Whenever we receive customer complaints about objectionable content we review them,” the company has said. “If we find these apps contain inappropriate material we remove them and request the developer make any necessary changes in order to be distributed by Apple."

Of course, Apple’s wobbling could benefit other outfits in the app space. Mikandi, for instance—“The World's First Mobile Adult App Store”—is perhaps the most logical beneficiary of a negative (or even arbitrary) stance by Apple toward adult apps. The company currently supports Android phone only, but has said that it will soon be able to support the development and marketing of iPhone apps, as well.

Mikandi Comment

AVN contacted Mikandi for comment on the App Store policy shift. 

"Since the beginning of the iTunes App Store, developers have been frustrated with the nature of Apple's decision-making," the company told AVN. "It has often seemed arbitrary and has been lacking in communication and specificity. As such, the latest news coming out of Apple is a positive, because it attempts to make their policy a bit more clear—they're not going to be accepting applications that contain 'overtly sexual content.' We applaud their efforts to be clearer with developers. 

"However,” Mikandi continued, “this reinforces a broader issue that is facing any mobile application developer: app stores that decide to reject applications based upon personal definitions of acceptable behavior put developers on very precarious ground. Apple's decisions to pull applications aren't limited to the adult or 'sexy' market and every developer that we talk with highlights their concerns about the tendency of mobile marketplaces to censor apps at any time.

"Our stance continues to be that the mobile phone belongs to the consumer who owns it and they should be able to download and purchase the applications that they desire. As such, we believe that our approach to the mobile application community is easier to navigate for mobile developers. We look forward to working with any developer who has been displaced by Apple in recent weeks."

TopBucks Comment

As mentioned, TopBucks also had their "Cutest Girls" mobile app pulled from the App Store today. According to TopBucks/Pink Visual director of new business development Liam Colins, an email was sent by Apple at about 7:00pm Thursday, only to make it way appropriately enough into his spam folder, where it was not noticed until Friday.

"It's unfortunate that Apple would chose to go the route of draconian censorship rather then exploiting the parental controls that are already inherent in their system," Colins told AVN. "Apple's refusal to recognize that porn not only exists, but is desired by their consumers, illustrates the worst kind of corporate revisionism."

Brooklyn Corp Comment

Also mentioned above was the fact that two apps for well-known adult performer—Teagan Presley and Eva Angelin—also were pulled. AVN received the following comment from the developer of those apps, Sean from Brooklyn Corp.

"I was called on Tuesday February 9 by a representative at Apple," sean told AVN. "She explained that there were some changes  at Apple in their approach to mature content on the Apple store due to 'a lot of complaints.' I was told that none of these complaints were about my apps, but the new policy would affect the apps I did have in the store. My Apps feature top adult stars in bikini-type outfits–pretty tame by most standards.

"The rep discussed in detail with me the necessary changes," Sean continued, "which were mostly to keep pre-purchase imagery more modest in the app store as that can be seen by all ages. She stated that I had until the 20th of February to make the changes. The apps remained in the store, and she said they would be happy to keep them there as long as I made the few changes.

"Well, on the 18th they pulled my apps from the store with no advance notice. When I spoke to the Apple rep on the 19th, she said that the policy had changed again, and that my apps and any other that are “sexually charged” or have the 'intent to stimulate' will not be welcome on the app store. My apps will not be allowed back in the store–no matter what, end of story. She said every other app like it, including all bikini girl apps, will be pulled from the store. It is an all-out genocide of mature content.

"I am currently working on a solution that will allow people to get apps outside the app store without hacking their phones," Sean summed up. "I am also seeing a trend of people moving to Android for better connectivity and an open minded app store. That may be the more logical move, as suddenly Apple has decided to burn my numerous hours as an Apple developer. Why develop for a system that does not care about the developer’s time?"

Grindhouse Mobile Comment

AVN received the follwing comment from mobile app developer Grindhouse Mobile, which had iPhone apps for adult performer Sunny Leone and nude model Aria Giovanni approved for sale in the App Store.

"We are obviously very disappointed with Apples sudden change in policy regarding adult related apps, especially given that there was no notice given to developers that a policy change was underway," said Grindhouse in a prepared statement. "Prior to the launch of our first app, Grindhouse Mobile worked closely with Apple's compliance department and took great care in following Apples original guidelines to gain approval of our first few apps, so this sudden change in policy was shocking to say the least. To make matters worse, once we understood what we thought to be Apples guidelines (based on previous approvals) we spent substantial time, money and resources developing new apps using the same exact guidelines. Obviously, we are now facing a complete loss on our investment to date given Apples latest policy change.

"If the App store is to reach its full potential," the company continued, "Apple needs to dramatically improve its communication process with its developers and stay consistent with it's policies and guidelines. This will allow developers to invest in new projects without fear of Apple declining or removing their apps after they've already invested time and money in development. Perhaps a pre-approval process would also make sense, provided that once an app is approved, it is not subject to removal due to a sudden change in policy.

"Going forward," the company concludes, "Grindhouse Mobile will limit it's development of iPhone apps to categories that are clearly not adult related and are at no risk of suddenly being removed from the store. At the same time, we will continue to aggressively build and market adult oriented apps for Android and other applicable platforms which operate on an open system, giving developers and users much more freedom."

It seems clear from the responses thus far that Apple not only has a public relations problem on its hands, but also a mobile app developer problem. Perhaps the company is betting that the allure of the iPad will trump any App Store issues, and that developers will continue to develop racy apps despite the new intolerance. Considering the probability that new Android-enabled tablets will hit the market before too long, however, that's quite a risky bet, even for a company with a customer base as loyal as Apple's.