Trent Reznor, the leader of the band Nine Inch Nails is pretty upset that Apple has rejected the latest version of his iPhone app. And rightfully so, the reason for the rejection once again points to Apple’s inconsistencies when it comes to the App Store approval process. While we pointed that out yesterday, Reznor pulls no punches in pointing it out today, in the NIN’s forums.
Here’s what Reznor had to say (warning, it gets pretty graphic):
Now, “The Downward Spiral” the album is not available anywhere in the iPhone app. The song “The Downward Spiral” I believe is in a podcast that can be streamed to the app.
Thanks Apple for the clear description of the problem – as in, what do you want us to change to get past your stupid fucking standards?
And while we’re at it, I’ll voice the same issue I had with Wal-Mart years ago, which is a matter of consistency and hypocrisy. Wal-Mart went on a rampage years ago insisting all music they carry be censored of all profanity and “clean” versions be made for them to carry. Bands (including Nirvana) tripped over themselves editing out words, changing album art, etc to meet Wal-Mart’s standards of decency – because Wal-Mart sells a lot of records. NIN refused, and you’ll notice a pretty empty NIN section at any Wal-Mart. My reasoning was this: I can understand if you want the moral posturing of not having any “indecent” material for sale – but you could literally turn around 180 degrees from where the NIN record would be and purchase the film “Scarface” completely uncensored, or buy a copy of Grand Theft Auto where you can be rewarded for beating up prostitutes. How does that make sense?
You can buy The Downward Fucking Spiral on iTunes, but you can’t allow an iPhone app that may have a song with a bad word somewhere in it. Geez, what if someone in the forum in our app says FUCK or CUNT? I suppose that also falls into indecent material. Hey Apple, I just got some SPAM about fucking hot asian teens THROUGH YOUR MAIL PROGRAM. I just saw two guys having explicit anal sex right there in Safari! On my iPhone!
Come on Apple, think your policies through and for fuck’s sake get your app approval scenario together.
Below, find the rejection letter that Apple sent NIN’s developer:
Follow-up: XXXXXXXXXX
Dear Craig,
Thank you for submitting nin: access to the App Store. We’ve reviewed nin: access and determined that we cannot post this version of your iPhone application to the App Store at this time because it contains objectionable content which is in violation of Section 3.3.12 from the iPhone SDK Agreement which states:
“Applications must not contain any obscene, pornographic, offensive or defamatory content or materials of any kind (text, graphics, images, photographs, etc.), or other content or materials that in Apple’s reasonable judgement may be found objectionable by iPhone or iPod touch users.”
The objectionable content referenced in this email is “The Downward Spiral”. Since the app is live on the App store, please make the necessary changes to the application as soon as possible, and resubmit your binary to iTunes Connect. Thank you
Regards,
iPhone Developer Program
Here’s an update from the actual developer as well:
v1.0 is live. v1.0.3 got rejected due to content yet the app has no content in it. this was mainly a stability release to fix the bug that crashes the app for international users. the bug was fixed 24 hours after 1.0 went live and we have been waiting for apple to approve it ever since. meanwhile the app continues to get a growing number of 1 star ratings from international users understandably frustrated by the bug. but looks like our hands are tied.
apple is not allowing us to make the current app more stable because there is “objectionable” content online (yes on the internet). so we are essentially not allowed to fixed bugs unrelated to the issue.
we removed the song “The Downward Spiral” from the server, hoping to appease apple and get this bug fix through. however i have yet to receive a reply.
So NIN went as far as removing the supposedly offending content from its servers to appease Apple. Pretty crazy if you ask me.
[via Reznor's tweets]
With an attitude like this and the sort of profanity this idiot has in his version of “music” – who really cares? Does anyone actually listen to this crap?
It’s NiN. Hello!?
Yeah what annhltr said. Scotte you must live under a rock. LOL.
but seriously, scotte fuck yourself you douchebag cuntrag censoring asshole. people can and should say whatever the FUCK we want and we don’t need toolbags mucking up the internet. it’s the last bastion of real freedom
Obviously, you have every right to say whatever you want. But its how you say it that will make people listen or not. While I understand that the process for accepting/rejecting apps on the AppStore is pretty infuriating, talking the solution out with them is more appropriate than getting on every social network and bashing the AppStore… This seems to be the way Reznor deals with things. He sees “injustice” then swears about it online like he’s a pissed off teenager.
Well if you’re banging on about freedom of expression and freedom of speech don’t you see how hypocritical you are for shouting down Scotty for his opinion?
And for future reference Samson – profanity in an argument is the last resort of a frustrated angry mind. Might I suggest you check thesaurus.com next time you run out of words to use before you resort to swearing? Not doing your argument for freedom on the Internet any good with your ranting.
What Dutch said. Well done.
I could not bring myself to say that to ScottE. However, I have to give Samson a plus one here …
+1
Yeah… so Reznor knows his target audience. His release was absolutely appropriate, and while not aimed at you, since profanity on the Internet evidently offends, it starts the conversation he wants to have the way he wants to have it.
Do people listen to NIN? Yes, yes they do. In my opinion he’s one of the most brilliant artist of our time.
Do people actually read TechCrunch comments?
No, nobody does. Seriously.
Ditto!
Fuck you, buddy.
I’m not your buddy, guy.
I’m not your guy, friend!
I’m not your friend, buddyyyy !
“With an attitude like this and the sort of profanity this idiot has in his version of “music””
Did you not even read his post? He is talking about the unfair level of censoring by Walmart & Apple.
Have you ever developed an iPhone app or published music”
I’ve never bought music at WalMart because it’s censored. If I buy a song, I want the song, not some sissy version of it.
What Apple is doing is something far worse though, in this case. The app was rejected because you can access “objectionable” content through the app. Hello… what Trent Reznor said… you can access “objectionable” material through iTunes and Safari. It’s hypocritical and ridiculous.
On top of that, this type of behavior makes me think Apple doesn’t respect freedom of speech or freedom of information on the internet. They shouldn’t be dictating what’s “objectionable” or not. What I find funny might make another person highly offended.
What Apple needs to do is just use a ratings system like every other form of medium. G, PG, etc, etc and leave it up to the consumer to make their own decision about what they do and don’t want to see. The only content Apple should be rejected is content that’s in direct violation of US law, or the laws in the country in which the consumer resides. For example, certain types of pornography that I won’t mention.
Be nice if there was an “edit” button on here somewhere. “form of media” is what it should say.
Those are some interesting points — ultimately though, I don’t think Apple was ready to deal with the challenge of having to rate the content sold on the App store. My guess is they are trying to avoid outside oversight from the gov.
However, in this case it seems NiN is going for some cheap and easy “rage against the man” publicity.
I agree with you on everything you wrote. I haven’t bought any music from walmart either. Its stupid that you can buy a gorefest with profanity in it, a video game that hacks off body parts and lets you have sex with hookers, but you can’t buy a CD that has profanity in it. It just makes no sense.
This makes me not like Apple even more. Apple to me is as bad as scientology and Steve Jobs is just as bad as L. Ron Hubbard. He says what he thinks people will like and want and the drones just buy it.
There should be a rating system like they do for music in a real music store…or Best Buy. They can even go a step further and in the online profile let the father or mother with a pull down menu say what rating of app their kids can buy. So if the kid is young they say they can buy only PG apps. Or they have to add them to the account to ok them to buy explicit apps. Simple as that.
Its sad when companies, government and religion try and dictate whats good for the masses to read, listen to and watch. We are suppose to be the home of the free and every day a little bit of that is being taken away from us.
LMAO
ScottE, in this place it seems like such a shame. But trust me, though it all looks different now, I know it’s still the same.
Quite a LOT of people listen to this “crap”. And whether you like the response or not, it is still a valid response. Inconsistency in standards are always going to be around, it’s how you deal with it that matters. At least this is something I expected Reznor would do.
Wait til someone in the DMV denies your driver’s license the next time you renew it and see if you want to swear or not…
Actually, yeah, a lot of people listen to his music. Nevertheless, his reaction and the anger in it came after the hypocritical rejection of a simple bug fix to an already approved application. Apple considers its image above and beyond necessity; they can simply create a separate section for adult/objectionable material but they choose to go with sanitized, despotic and incoherent/undefined and purely subjective non-standards in order to produce this Bokanovskyfied cleanliness that turns off a lot of potential customers and developers.
The Ruiner’s got a lot to prove.
He’s got nothing to lose and now he made you believe. The Ruiner’s your only friend; well, he’s the living end to the cattle he deceives. The raping of the innocent, you know the Ruiner ruins everything he sees.
Now the only pure thing left in my fucking world is wearing your disease.
This fuck head is still listens to Boy George!
fuck you mr. censorship.
7.5/10
What a stupid comment. The issue isn’t what he says in his music it is the fact that Apple has this huge enterprise and doesn’t have clearcut guidelines which developers can use to develop products for it. Beside that hopefully you don’t judge the quality of music by whether or not it has profanity in it. Just because you don’t prefer a type of music doesn’t mean that they have any less rights to publish the content that the create. America, dumbass!. Love it or leave it. I recommend Tehran or Kabul. You won’t ever have to worry about your poor sensitive ears over there.
ScottE your a fucking idiot (I’m older than you and I can recognize true talent – so rare in the music industry anymore) GTFO you noob
Less concerned, about fitting into the world
Your world that is!
Cause it doesn’t really matter anymore
(no, it doesn’t really matter anymore)
No, it doesn’t really matter anymore
None of this shit really matters anymore
Yes, I am alone but then again I always was
As far back as I can tell, I think maybe it’s because
Because you were never really real to begin with
I just made you up, to hurt myself
I just made you up, to hurt myself, yeah
And I just made you up to hurt myself
I just made you up to hurt myself, yeah
And I just made you up to hurt myself
And it worked
Yes, it did
+1
Are you kidding me? Reznor is a genius. Everything he has done from Pretty Hate Machine to The Slip is just amazing. Find a computer, listen to it!
Maybe, but not the point. Reznor should put his money where his mouth is, and pull all of his music out of the iTunes store, then he would actually be saying something. As it is, he is just a whiny little bitch, a one inch finishing nail.
Yeah, completely agree. Reznor wants to give his fans a cool applications, gets denied by apple, so surely he should inconvenience fans more by making his music less available.
That’s definitely both the main issue here, and the solution.
Exactly. Reznor is a whining snot looking for free pub by slamming Apple for enforcing the terms of a contract that developers agree to abide by. Whether the update had objectionable content or not, is immaterial. the app in its entirety, did and so violated the standard.
I don’t like NIN either. Reznor is, was, and always will be a little subruban entitlement bitch trying to convince everyone he’s a badass.
Like a lot of artists, NIN doesn’t have control over their own music (until NIN dropped their label and started self-releasing).
UMG owns the rights to most of the NIN catalog, and I am sure they care nothing about the current drama, and all about making a few more dollars.
Ghosts is really very good and nothing like most of his other material. This you would not know. It looks like inane comments like “crap” drew out the venom you so rightly deserve.
First, they came for the “crap” and you said nothing…
if this was made by microsoft whole blogosphere would be screaming about how such and asshole MS is, but this is apple, and merely anyone says something, because, apple is allowed to fuck their customers and partners in the ass, and no one will ever say anything to them. this is apple, if they do it, they must right.
this is where apple fanboism got us, fucking apple fanboys, stop worshiping apple and things will get better.
we are apple fanboys and we are screaming. Get some of that earwax out of your ears, buddy.
You know, tastes in music vary widely. You never know where there might be someone who likes it. Someone totally unsuspecting, such as, for example, me.
I don’t subject you to it, and don’t even ask you to listen, so please, put a sock in it.
Successful troll is successful.
It must be nice to be an expert on things you know nothing about. Very impressive. What a gaping asshole.
Scott, whether or not you like his music is not the point, not even close.
Don’t be a tool. If that is all you have to say don’t post on TC – go to tigerbeat. What Reznor is pointing out is that the folks at Apple live in silos. They’re not talking to each other about policies that supposedly come from the top down. There is no sharing of information between the groups on policies and procedures. That’s how stupid apps like the baby shaker got thru but not nin.
Actually ScottE Time magazine named Mr. Reznor most influential individual of his generation. Spin magazine named him one of the top artists of all time. And he has been one of the very few who has the following and business skills to turn his back on the mainstream record labels and strike out on his own. His vision has caused him to do such intelligent things such as conduct his own market studies to discover the new paradigm of music distribution. He runs his own distribution as well as distribution for other artists, has seized the merchandise market forming his own merchandise company, runs his own studio, as well as hired multimedia artists who’s work is taught in media design schools. Mr. Reznor is a force to be reckoned with one who the record labels not only watch very carefully but fear. He is the bleeding edge of what will be the new paradigm of the music business. You may not like his music, his brutal honesty and poetics of the street purposely fly in the face of conservative delicateness. His instrumentation pushes the boundaries of preconceived notions of what music is, however he is formally trained in music and make no mistake the sound is on purpose and with full mastery of his instruments. In short sir you ask does anyone care? The fact of the matter is everyone involved in the music industry in any way cares, anyone who buys music cares whether they know it or not, because his market research and studies into future distribution methods are the future of music. You may not get his music but he will change the way you consume it like it or not.
Yes, they do. And in this case, profanity is warranted. Adds nice color to the email. Apple ignores it’s developers anyway so you might as well have fun with the email.
You MUST be trolling. Move along – nothing to see here.
Seriously?! It’s about time people start getting mad as fuck and stand up for what they know is fair.
Trent Reznor makes music I can’t listen to. But I respect his position not only as a musician but as a social pundit.
Troll much?
obvious troll is obvious.
An attitude like that? You’re judging him on saying, oh no, the F word, too. Why not address the real hypocrisy he pointed out, quite eloquently – f-word or not – regarding Grand Theft Auto and Hollywood.
Selective censoring is the worst kind, because it’s posing as righteousness when in fact it’s just bad organization and bureaucracy within the outfit.
At least Trent (who is a genius by the way – you do know NIN, right?) has the nuts to tell these conglomerates to keep their money, while he stands up for his music – not “music”, music, real gorgeous, go fuck yourself if I’m changing it, I don’t want your money – music.
Yes people from this century listen to his music.
He also happens to be one of the most influential pioneers of new forms of digital music distribution and is incredibly influential on the music industry as a whole.
Whether you like him or not, he is paving the way for digital music distribution free from the restraints of record companies.
And whether you like him or his music is a personal issue you need to work out with yourself. And your comment bears no weight to the topic of the article whatsoever.
So stop whining. Nobody wants to hear your incessant rambling.
The bigger issue (and the point of this whole article) is that regardless of whether or not this was about Trent Reznor or a small indie developer, Apple needs to be more transparent in it’s review process and reveal to developers their methods so that they can avoid extremely detrimental app store rejections. Timing is everything with an app, and if you can’t get your app out before someone else you lose money. Plain and simple.
Now that’s a response by Trent I can stand by. Makes me proud!
Not only is his music brilliant, but his approach to the music industry is as well – http://www.crow...ers-change.html
I’m with you MG, its kinda disappointing that they removed the song. From what I’ve read their approval process is about as inconsistent as it gets – stick by your guns and fight to fix the problem.
It seems clear to me (extrapolating from what Reznor’s said), that they are removing the song simply because they are trying to deal with this issue for the sake of the upset fans… not because they are trying to kowtow to Apple.
Similar thing happened to tweetie – it got reviewed when “fuck” was a trending topic or something..
yep, covered it here:
http://ventureb...twitter-trends/
they later relented:
http://ventureb...-words-for-all/
Apple’s process is horribly broken, and it is embarrassing. When are they going to do something about this?
Will someone from Techcrunch try to get an official word from Apple on what they are doing to fix this and how long it’s going to take? That would definitely be the scoop of the moment…
M M MMM
DOWNWARD SPIRAL IS FILTHY GOOD GOOD ALBUM
SCOTTE – EAT MY HEX FOOL. CHOKE ON IT. AND KNOW THAT I AM.
REGARDS,
SSSIXXX l..l,
I’m not a big fan of industrial or Reznor’s music as a whole (just not my thing, really) but to leave a comment that calls him an idiot for pointing out the hypocrisy that Apple and/or Walmart show just make you out to be an insensitive jackass. Whether or not you like his music is irrelevant. And as far as his attitude is concerned, it’s his music. If you don’t like it, make it easy on yourself and just go buy whatever Walmart or the iTunes charts tell you to buy. It’s apparent (and OK) that NIN and Reznor are not for you.
When will you people learn that Apple is LAME? How many “free passes” must you give this company before you figure out that this company is not “all that”. 1,000,000 free passes? More? Yes, more it is… Mr Trent, either play by the LAME rules, or go somewhere else. Wishing and hoping Apple will “Change” is an exercise in futility.
is this working?
I like Trent’s attitude and I completely agree. I never understood Wal Mart’s methods when I purchased a hip hop CD at the age of 17 and took it home only to find there were no curse words and it was blatantly obvious that they were removed. I had to do research to learn that all CDs sold at Wal Mart were censored. I also learned that WalMart was in the top 5 music sales in the country.
If the entire album is censored, why are people buying the albums? Are there that many people that love listening to insane clown posse with every other lyric taken out?
stupid stupid apple.
A
P
P
L
E
S
U
C
K
S
Not for just there online presence but reselling the same hardware in a pc at inflated prices. Although I would hire them to re-market the pet rock. I don’t know if that makes Apple good or consumers dumb, probably a little of both at work.
very true, apple fanboism gut us here.
+1
Hopefully for Trent & some of the other folks on here, they will find GOD & he will show them what morality is. I truly pray that happens. As for Apple. I love you guys.!!!
Where do you retarded people come from? Do they actually have the internet in the 1800’s or whatever century that you live in?
Yeah, let’s bring religion into this discussion, because it’s totally the point.
Great idea Janet. I’ll see you in hell.
Hahahahahahahahahahahahaaa. Janet, how long have you been trolling techcrunch to find a place to insert that?
I think what happened to him, happened to other developers too.
Other indie developers simply doesn’t give up on Apple, because other options of distribution, or other platforms are not as lucrative as iPhone.
While those who already have a reliable other sources of income, don’t bother about not being able to distribute on App Store.
its in the iPhone SDK Agreement. you break it. your app gets rejected. plain and simple.
Apple will loosen up over time. They have to be more careful about what they let in the app store because they are also acting as a publisher and publicizer (through the recent releases section). What they allow into the store is seen by the users as approved by Apple. In fact, many of the users even think Apple produces it internally.
As the number of applications increases, they will surely relax their standards. I agree the censorship by Apple sucks, as well as the DRMing of the phone, but at least there is an obvious reason behind it all.
Honestly I think Renzor is acting like an idiot. Of course his app is going to have approval problems if it directs users to content with expletives.
“Honestly I think Renzor is acting like an idiot. Of course his app is going to have approval problems if it directs users to content with expletives.”
Safari is always directing me to content with lots of expletives, like this very page.
Last I checked, Safari doesn’t direct you anywhere until you do a search or load a bookmark for a site that you’ve already directed yourself to. I’m guessing Reznor’s app has a menu which leads people to the expletives more directly.
Last I checked the appstore doesn’t force anyone to download the NIN:Access app, Click on Media, Click on Music, Click on Nine Inch Nails Playlists, Click on Definitive NIN: The Singles, and then Click on Closer. First is this anymore direct than typing nin+closer in safari or NIN in the itunes store? What in your opinion are good reasons to deny people the right to publish their content? Nudity, profanity, violence, promoting illicit behavior, or behavior you personally don’t approve of? I am greatly offended everytime I hear a Christian vomit out the word of god. Why don’t we ban this?
Actually, I am all for banning Christianity, except that it tends to backfire.
As for your other points, please see my original post. The important point is that Apple is seen as the publicizer. Hopefully, at some point they’ll just let everything in, and simple refuse “objectionable” stuff a place in the top-N lists.
Stop sucking Jobs’ dick, you motherfucking Mactard.
Please come up with a more interesting insult. This one is cliche and boring.
Who are you, or Apple, to make this decision? Haven’t we been through this already with Carlin, or the Dead Kennedy’s, or any number of bands that stood up against the contradictions of such censorship?
It is interesting to note last week, that churchgoers are more likely to support torture. A bit of swearing and they’re in a slather though. Irony is not dead!
Your mommy.
Fuck ScottE, Fuck Apple, Fuck PCs, Fuck Banks, Fuck Everybody. Just turn the Fucking MUSIC UP Please.
Just wait. Mac/Safari users who scroll down and see your comment will soon have their computer automatically shut off, to shield the user’s eyes from such expletives! Watch out for that update, it’s got to be coming soon…
Will you all just STFU?
People like you make the internet suck. You want censorship? Go to China. That’s REAL censorship, bunch of whiny tech bitches.
You too, Trent. Damn Emo-nite.
Did you just say Trent was emo? How fucking stupid are you? Do you even understand the meaning of the words you are using?
F**K YOU TOO. Ya Trent nob-gobbla.
lol
why is tc freezing on me today? ggrrr!!!!
I am shocked at how much egg Apple is allowing to have on their collective proverbial face. You would think someone would step in and force some quick changes to improve all the bad PR that is happening. It’s not like NIN is some tiny club band. This news is going to hit mainstream news outlets and Apple is not going to look good.
You think the mainstream media cares for some pottymouthed rocker dude, who looks like every fathers’ nightmare.
Come’on now. They’ll side with Apple 100%.
Apple = establishment
NiN = anti-establishment
More importantly, I am hearing from labels that this is affecting how they perceive even creating apps for the damn device. Good thing that I’m not trying to create a service or something. Grrr.
1. remove “offending” material from server
2. submit version 1.0.4 to Apple
3. wait for approval
4. resubmit “offending” material to server
5. ???
6. profit
Not that complicated.
First off you have completely missed the point. Secondly, the app is free. Who is making the profit? The idea is to provide fans with additional ways in which to get access to NIN media. Has anyone complained to Apple about the app or did Apple just decide on their own that the material was offensive?
Chill out. He’s just making a joke.
O underpants gnomes. My bad.
I love Apple products, I will never go back to PC. BUT… Apple you need to work it out with NIN. Show the APPLE LOVE, admit the mistake and move forward.
Not only am I tired of us having to read what is essentially the same article over and over again, I’m tired of having to make the same comments each time. Apple needs to get their shit together and fix this. Whatever they are doing right now is not working!
1 billion apps downloaded and market domination.
I know you don’t like how some things are working. But can you please explain how it is not working?
You need to be explained how the approval process is not working?
Domination of which market, exactly? They sell fewer phones than Nokia, fewer phones than RIM, fewer phones than all the Windows Mobile phones combined. Do you mean they are dominating the market for iPhone apps? No shit there, they won’t let anyone else distribute them.
i like this content
If Apple lets one party violate the agreement terms, then they would open themselves up to everyone violating it. As is too often these days, TechCrunch is trying to get lots of viewers by sensationalizing Apple as the bad guy.
Dear Trent,
Stop being a pussy. Have you ever written an agreement and asked a party to sign it and then expected them to live up to the agreement? I assume the answer is yes. So, stop being a hypocrite and wake up to the simple fact that you agreed to the terms set forth. If you don’t like it then don’t use it and stop acting like a victim, or follow the agreement nd stop acting like a victim, or ask your lawyer to draw up a modified agreement and contact Apple to propose they sign the terms that you would like and stop acting like a victim.
You are correct. I wonder if he will pull his content from the iTMS? I wonder if Apple will pull it? I believe that most here are simply looking for consistency.
The problem with your argument is that Apple had already approved a prior version of the exact same app with the exact same content. All they’re trying to do is release an update to that app which includes a bug fix.
Well, I have not read the terms closely. You could be right if the terms say “if we, Apple, don’t catch a violation in one version of your software, you can continue to violate the agreement thereafter.” But if you are implying that the agreement is voided simply because Apple missed a violation the first time, you are incorrect. I realize this is frustrating for Mr Reznor, but he signed an agreement and because he gets around it one time it does not give him the ability to continue to do so.
It seems you’re missing the point. Don’t worry.. You’re not alone there..
The rant (yea, agreed, it’s a rant.. be sure to let your friends and family know you’d be happy to be called a pussy the next time you get annoyed with something and attempt to vent about it) was explicitly in regard to the inconsistent review process, and the lack of transparency. His goal is obviously not to “stick it to the man”, but to deliver his media to the people that want to have it. Obviously, this goal is much harder to reach when the response from those who are controlling his distribution is “Sorry we didn’t tell you before you wasted $XXXXX developing your app, but we don’t like _________. Remove it, and at some point we’ll let you distribute your work.” What happens when he resubmits and the next App Store censor finds something else they find “objectionable”? (Yes, as is clearly stated in the contract, they allow individuals to determine what’s objectionable based on personal values. (”.. or other content or materials that in Apple’s reasonable judgment may be found objectionable ..”)
The problem is that the agreement is as broad as it is in it’s definition of “objectionable content” to begin with. The point he’s making with iTunes and Safari is that the content is delivered in the same way through his app as it is in those; you still have to hunt the content down. The decent thing for those at Apple to do for the developers that are creating the App Store’s success (there would be no App Store success if it weren’t for the apps.. can’t argue that), would be to provide a clear and detailed list of what will be rejected, and what limitations are set as pertains to the content that can be accessed through the app.
Anyhow, I’m not trying to call you out personally.. I’m just saying (to all of you): Pay attention.
In other words: in order to get the approval from the App Store NIN has to give up being NIN – But why should NIN fans download this app anyway?
Why does Trent not simply release his app through Cydia? Every NIN-fan would jailbreak, that’s gotta be a better way of giving Apple hell than posting angry rants.
1 Billion downloads later, it is high time Apple came up with a transparent policy.
I personally think that the App Store cannot be scaled up if Apple is not coming out with something more transparent and objective.
I guess they need to talk to the developers and take that feedback, but I do not see any such initiative forthcoming.
Fair enough too. He has every right to be pissed off because it does sound ridiculously frustrating. Trent makes some very good points and if he alienates people by swearing, that’s a shame.
What he doesn’t bring up is that Apple considers his app update to be “offensive” but they approved the app where you shake a baby to death. That’s the real WTF point for me.
Anything NIN related? Offensive!
Simulating shaken baby syndrome? Family entertainment!
Glad we cleared that up.
Trent Reznor fucking sucks now…
Oh wait… he’s always sucked. Hurhur
Why wouldn’t you be pissed off at the double standards of domineering tech-conglomerates when they own a vast majority of the market share? As he said… Department stores pull the exact same maneuver… Censoring music whilst leaving the content of other mediums like film and gaming completely unfiltered.
It’s either all or nothing in my opinion. Personally, I wouldn’t advocate such bullshit in censoring content all because a few minority groups won’t get off of their moral high-horses and keep an open mind about things. If something offends you, fine. Stop preaching and ignore it because it won’t go away. It’s pathetic that these powerhouse corporations yield to such nugatory complaints. Get a backbone.
As for going tits over tail in anger over the rejection… Can you blame Reznor for getting pissed off? You never get anywhere when trying to individually take on the corporate beuracracy… You do the right thing, and you get automated replies and hollow jargon. Blasting them through the media is the only way to get the attention of these money-grubbing, people pleasing assholes…
pardon my poor spelling btw… o:
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He’s right about criticizing double standards but that’s nothing new: we live in a hypocritical society and money is the rule.
He’s no different though, why does he want so badly to have his app on the iPhone? because it’s hip and cool and prints money? They have a conflict of interests, but let’s not fool ourselves, it’s not an artist against a business, it’s just two businesses head-on.
That reminds me of some lyrics — sorry, not from NiN but from the Offspring: “dog eat dog, every day, on our fellow man we prey”
Why the hell did he give in to Apple by removing the supposedly offending content , if trents real reason is about unfair censorship then he wouldnt have done this…. its all about money if you ask me….
Ugh.. It’s not about “unfair” censorship. It’s about inconsistent censorship. They set a standard by allowing the same content to be accessed through other outlets that they ~control~, and then break that same standard by rejecting it in this one.
The point is that the same person is not likely to review the same content more than once. This creates a frustrating cycle of trying to meet a standard that’s neither defined, or maintained consistently.
most of NiN is simplistic beats, mixed with incoherent and vapid lyrics that realistically serve no purpose in the music industry than to sell records by creating songs that are appealing to listen to, but are down right vapid and anti-intellectual
It’s part of the new “zero tolerance” attitudes that are pervasive now. My son wore a pair of Dickie jeans to school and was sent home. It has the word “dick” after all! Whatever. Or smokers now not only not smoking in buildings, which I understand, but places like college campuses or hospital grounds not allowing it outside in the open air. These things tend to pendulum back and forth but it is really irritating the right swing at present with little common sense or common sense solutions that can satisfy people’s sensitives without having zero tolerance for anything that resembles the offense. Now I wonder if the planet Uranus is stricken from the science books? Or cockroaches? .. bad on two levels.
Amusingly, you can’t smoke on Apple’s property– not even in the parking lots– hence smokers have to hide behind bushes or go across the street.
really?!
Same with Martha Stewart, even if you’re working on location – outside even! Fascist.
It’s like a headline from the Onion: “Trent Reznor Still Complaining Loudly About Something Or Other: Remixes To Follow”
Hi, good post. I have been pondering this topic,so thanks for posting. I’ll definitely be subscribing to your posts.
I’ll say it again. F**K TRENT RENZOR.
Steve Jobs > Trent Renzor, ALL DAY.
That’s the most retarded comment I ever read on a blog in years. Congratulations! you’ve just won the webbyASSHOLE!
Fairly certain that Pretty Hate Machine is the #1 all time soundtrack for strip clubs!
Yes Apple has done the right thing here. Apple products are the best, and we have to keep them clean. Pretty Apple product becomes dirty with bad content. Shame. Take your dirty product and put them on PC, because PC is the dirty product. Because Apple says so.
Love or hate NiN, they are now timeless and changed western music a bit in their own rite. Trent’s push towards the digital reign of the music industry and social networking with fans as a real person is amazing and he’s one of the only ones to get it so far.
Apple: you are amazing at making software and hardware. Don’t try to be a big brother. Just let artists do what they want, it’s in your best long term benefit as the music industry changes and increasingly uses your services to promote and sell their music.
Fuck walmart and censorship.
NIN is a joke. Can’t writer good music so NIN tries to create controversy to attract attention.
Retire old man – yes, that’s you, Trent Reznor.
Good command of the English language. Your parents must be proud. Go put your head back up the ass of the next “American Idol.”
Didn’t his manager steal $30 million from him?
If he watched his finances more carefully, maybe he wouldn’t have to beg Apple for some revenue.
The main problem with the iPhone, and in fact with Apple at the moment, is the horrible way in which the AppStore is run. It should be called AppBazaar or AppSouk. With the latest Nine Inch Nails saga, we can see that Apple, in that regard, is out of touch with its community and, in fact, its future. Also, the AppStore highly favors developers who are in it for the money, not for the passion of developing wonderful applications. It is a shame. Whatever happened to “Think different”? Maybe this is what the majority of the people want anyway… At the same time, I like the idea that Nine Inch Nails, one of the most important bands in the history of modern music, is being treated the same as anyone else. Unfortunately, the drones in charge of making censorship decisions at Apple are probably highly unqualified to do so, both from a moral and an artistic standpoints. I truly hope that fixing the AppStore is Apple’s highest concern at this time.
I’m on the fence on this one. At the end of the day, Apple (and Wal-Mart) can do whatever they want with their platforms, API and products. To compare it to Safari is pretty dumb – a browser is a gateway to the Internet, which isn’t owned by anyone. The content isn’t controlled by Apple. In this case, Apple can control the content delivered by applications developed on their platform and made available on their product, the iPhone. So they will. They are doing what they feel is in the best interest of the “greater good”. Call it censorship… call it what you wish.
If someone comes to my website and sets up a profile filled with profanity, I’ll likely review it. As the founder of a (music) website, I do what I feel is best for the greater good as well. If I’m inconsistent, someone can bring it up with me and I’ll review my policies and procedures. If they approach me like he approached Apple, I’ll likely never allow the user or band back. I’m a pretty fair guy, but if you treat me like that, see ya later.
If they so chose, they could blacklist certain websites from being accessed via Safari.. The point here is that they choose not to do that. They set a standard in allowing the “offending” content to be accessed through iTunes and Safari, and break that standard by not allowing that same content to be accessed through their app store. It’s inconsistent, and I’m sure it’s frustrating.
Don’t mind me, just testing your Facebook Connect implementation. I hear it’s a great one.