Start Mobile has managed to get 18 separate iPhone applications approved by Apple. So you’ll imagine their surprise when one of them was recently rejected. But you may be even more surprised to find out why.
Apparently, Apple doesn’t like the way one piece of art in the app depicts President Obama. Is it out of line or tasteless? Well, you can determine for yourself, because you’ve undoubtedly seen the art in question before: It’s Shepard Fairey’s famous “HOPE” image of Obama that was everywhere during his Presidential campaign.
So why on Earth would this be rejected? Well, here’s the wording in the rejection:
It contains content that ridicules public figures and 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.”
“Ridicules public figures”? This image is hanging in the National Portrait Gallery at the Smithsonian — yet, Apple apparently finds it inappropriate.
To be clear, the app in question is a free demo app of Start Mobile’s galleries and contains a dozen images, but Apple is clearly just unnerved by the Obama one as you can see in the correspondence below which the developer has shared.
Here’s Apple’s initial rejection letter:
Subject: Start Mobile Wallpaper Gallery 1.0: Application Submission Feedback
Date: Tue, 19 May 2009 12:27:02 -0700 (PDT)
From: iPhone Developer Program
To: XXXXX@XXXXXXX.com, XXXXX@XXXXXXX.netPlease include the line below in follow-up emails for this request.
Follow-up: 74455381
Dear START MOBILE, INC.,Thank you for submitting Start Mobile Wallpaper Gallery to the App Store. We’ve reviewed Start Mobile Wallpaper Gallery and determined that we cannot post this version of your iPhone application to the App Store because it contains content that ridicules public figures and 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.”
An example of a public figure is attached.
If you believe that you can make the necessary changes so that Start Mobile Wallpaper Gallery does not violate the iPhone SDK Agreement we encourage you to do so and resubmit it for review.
Regards,
iPhone Developer Program
****************************
Here’s Start Mobile’s follow-up trying to explain why the image is not ridiculing a public figure:
Subject: [Fwd: Start Mobile Wallpaper Gallery 1.0: Application Submission Feedback]
Date: Tue, 19 May 2009 21:56:29 -0700
From: John Doffing
To: iPhone Developer ProgramFollow-up: 74455381
Apple Developer Program:
The attached image is most certainly NOT content that ridicules a public figure, nor is it in any way “obscene, pornographic, offensive or defamatory”.
The attached image is an iconic portrait by globally acclaimed artist SHEPARD FAIREY, and is actually included in the National Portrait Gallery!
* http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts_and_culture/7817466.stm
According to the BBC:
“When people think of a portrait of Obama, they think of this image.”
Fairey’s works are also in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.Thank you in advance for your time and consideration.
–
THANK YOU!
Best,
John
Now, lest you think Apple is possibly rejecting the app because Start Mobile doesn’t have permission to use the artist’s work, Start Mobile has three other apps featuring the work of Shepherd Fairey that are already in the App Store.
Okay, so maybe Apple’s isn’t comfortable with the bit of legal wrangling that is taking place over the artwork? That’s possible, but that’s not what it says in the rejection. And there are other applications like this one that use the image in question. And, you’ll notice, that’s not even the real version of the image, and it’s being used in the app’s icon. Why Apple would let that slip by and not this app? I have no idea.
And further, Start Mobile actually has another app that also features an Obama image that has been sitting around waiting to be approved for 2 months now, presumably for the same reason. That app features artwork from urban artist Justin Bua, and contains the image of Obama shown on the right.
So why doesn’t the developer just remove the offending images and get these apps approved? Well, because he doesn’t think he should have to, and believes this is just another case of the App Store approval process gone off the tracks.
“You notice that my original email to you didn’t scream CENSORSHIP or anything like that. I am quite sure that this is simply what amounts to a clerical error. A billion apps sold. 50k apps. etc etc. So this is just growing pains on their part. But unfortunately, it effected us directly, and had we not done SOMETHING, the end result would have been what amounts to accidental censorship,” Start Mobile’s John Doffing told us over email.
He goes on to note that he spoke with someone in developer relations a few weeks ago about the rejection, and they indicated that any apps that contain images of Obama may simply be getting rejected outright because there was a lot of “incendiary political content” that was coming through the App Store approval process around the time of the election. Sometimes “‘the baby is thrown out with the bathwater,” is what Doffing was told.
Doffing said that openness about what was going on made him hopeful that the app would find its way to the App Store, but that apparently didn’t change anything.
Sadly, this looks like yet another ridiculous App Store rejection. While Apple has no shortage of developers wanting to make apps for the platform, at some point, all of these ridiculous rejections run the risk of turning developers away.
Apple badly needs to straighten out its policies and get a team in place that doesn’t make dozens of silly mistakes with regards to app approvals and denials. The system continues to be broken.
Sure, Apple can do what it wants, but it’s asking developers to make apps for its store, which move iPhone and iPod touch units and make Apple all that money. Increasingly, the promise is that developers can earn a living off of the platform, or at least supplement their income. But they can’t do that if Apple keeps rejecting their apps for no apparent reason.
Honestly, the iPhone is such a joke, I don’t understand why people buy it. Think about it, if you were restricted to what you wanted to put on your computer by let’s say Lenovo, would you buy a Lenovo product? I highly doubt it.
There’s a reason the iPhone sold like crap in Japan. Consumers actually understand what it they’re buying over there.
Apple has all the right to say what will be on the app store and what will not. You must remember that its the app store thats its not aloud on not the phone itself, because the app store has apples name on it and apple does not want itself to display any political views of the company.
Hold on for a sec, as the Iphone reaches critical mass, at some point… soon, it’s going to become an anti-trust issue.
You know what would be even more fun? Apple banning this developer for publishing their emails to twitcrunch without their consent.
Connor, have you ever heard of an Anti Trust Lawsuit?
No? Don’t worry you will hear about it soon when Apple gets it’s holes stuffed.
Lenovo restricts be from changing the power options on my netbook.
@Igor. The minute you say, “The iPhone is such a joke” no one takes your comment or you seriously… The inconsistency of the app store approval PROCESS is the ONLY thing that is a joke, and even then, only from a developers standpoint. Its the one glaring embarrassment to the otherwise flawless “iPhone experience”. Every smart phone released in the past 6 months, and very likely everyone that will be available to you in the future, from any manufacturer, will in one way or another be trying to replicate it. Period.
Exactly, I read “The iPhone is such a joke” and moved on. Didn’t even read the rest of his comment.
As long as I can get the Optimus Prime version of this picture: CHANGE….. into a truck.
I’d get that in a heart beat.
The people buy it because, its the only think to have great navigation experience with the safari, think about it, and wiresless everywhere with good battery, buy one and comment here then.
You apparently cared enough to post a reply…
Sorry, this was a reply to a parent thread that magically disappeared, like so many rejected iPhone apps.
Apple needs to get a better review process in place, or just get out of the business of playing traffic cop for the iPhone app market and leave that to third parties.
I don’t think a phone manufacturer has any right whatsoever to restrict what I put on my phone, the whole process just baffles me.
I’m going to go ahead and side with Apple on this. He is an object of public ridicule.
It ridicules because Obama is a joke. That image has transformed into what was supposed to be a real message of hope into a ‘wink-wink, nod-nod’ message of NO hope. It’s the same effect as rolling your eyes… the ‘yeah right!’ of images.
Wow. 6 months in the mans presidency is defined. You sir… are an idiot.
yes. Defined by ballooning debt. Sky-rocketing unemployment. Tax increases on energy and healthcare no one can bear. Inflation that will grow out of control. Willingness to coddle to south American dictators – and on and on.
And he didn’t even pay my rent or buy my gas! I still have to worry about putting gas in my car!
Republican?
Get the f… out of here!
Democrat?
Get the f… out of here!
You HAVE heard of the First Amendment have you not?
at least paul gave reasons. maybe you should try justifying why opposite opinions of your own, expressed in an non-insulting manner, should be removed or “got out of here”…
Ah yes. The “tolerant” party speaks.
I sir, am an AMERICAN. You should try it sometime.
Yawn.
“Inflation that will grow out of control. ”
You due realize there has been deflation the past 3 months? Just another ignorant fool screaming for his piece of the cake. You have no control currently so try to stay objective and _rationally_ observe so next election you can make a enlightened decision. Dont immediately fall into the common err of “I am a republican I dispise him” or “I am a democrat he is amazing”.
“And he didn’t even pay my rent or buy my gas! I still have to worry about putting gas in my car!”
Wow… wow.
iPhone 3Gs problem
http://www.apfe...-t239720-6.html
is this for real?
http://www.tech....com/author/mg/
is 90% of posts written by MG about iPhone and Twitter?
yea, techcrunch is in the process or rebranding itself (they are just waiting for the designer to finish their logo):
TwitCrunch (R)
“Twitter, Apple, and a few others… ” (TM)
btw, i think MG was hired to cover Iphone & Twitter, right?
Only 90%? I did not check but assumed it was at 100% until a couple days ago when he started covering M$… I guess he is not “as bad” as I thought ///
“So you’ll imagine their surprise when one of them was recently rejected. But you may be even more surprised to find out why.”
Nope, and nope.
I’ve had plenty of apps rejected, can I get a TechCrunch post for each of them?
And yes, images of public figures (politicians, specifically) are apparently a no-no, even when they’re not “ridiculing”. That’s a lesson app developers learn pretty quickly.
right except for the dozens of Obama apps already in the App Store.
Apple’s inconsistency is another lesson developers learn pretty quickly :p
I wonder what apple will have to say once this and many many many others (otherwise great) apps reach the android market and start making millions of downloads. HTC magic is already available and htc magic coming in 2 weeks.
“Sorry but those multimillion-download apps are not suitable for the taste of our precious users. They prefer farts”
Wow! What a great opportunity for Apple to create some positive PR for the brand and for the iPhone.
Apple: Just approve this app ASAP and extend an apology to the developer and to the public (most of whom, especially the iPhone target demographic, still feel very favorable towards Obama).
Apple could get a lot of positive ink by simply saying “Sorry, we blew it.”
But simply doing nothing will hurt Apple. Consider that right now there are millions of Palm Treo users trying to decide between the Palm Pre and the iPhone. A perception of censorship or bias against Obama could push undecideds to the Pre. A company that thinks it can cheerfully ignore such things is unlikely to stay cheerful.
“iPhone target demographic” = hyopcritic people who let pretty interfaces excuse censorship & authoritarian rule while they rip on everyone else for their lack of open-ness.
iPhone target demographic + tech knowledge = hyporcrytic morons
It’s funny how everyone overreacts to everything these days.
Tell the 2 million people who have lost their jobs since President Narcissist was elected that they are ‘overreacting’. Reminder: who has controlled Congress since 2006? Who is passing spending bills without even allowing any American to read them before they vote them into law? Who has spent 4 times in just 12 weeks what Bush spent in 8 years? Then go watch the video at http://www.inflation.us and start preparing to lose everything you have in the next 2-4 years.
I agree with your sentiment, but is this really the place for it?
Why did Apple think that it was ridiculing him? That picture has nothing ridiculing about it at all.
Seriously, if this application does not automatically dispense Hopium, who would want it. Hopium could get us through the recession if ingested on a frequent basis.
It’s not offensive, just a lie. Don’t see much “hope” in multi trillion dollar deficits and nothing to show for it but higher and higher unemployment. Wait till the inflation starts to kick in. Even the most ardent liberal will start seeing that “hope” schtick for what it was. A lie.
2 cents.
- not worth em.
I think it’s cause they put H instead of N on the image.
…as in Nope
We got it — it wasn’t that smart.
Oh my, some just threw up the R-bomb.
Apple is right.
As a business guy, I have to figure in the risk of getting rejected by apple for any app I fund and as more of these baseless rejections arise, my risk factor increases and thereby my hurdle-rate causes more apps to not get developed.
Apple really needs a good pre-approval process – maybe this is a reason why there are very few deep and useful apps?
Or perhaps they should accept this approval process is corrupt & immoral… we’re not in Russia a century ago, are we?
almost there
Fanboys of Apple, what is your issue? Apple is a company with good products and Nazi policies.
Of course you already know this. So what’s newsworthy here?
Ha ha.. another EPIC FAIL by the App store. That is why I ditched the gucci iPhone for an Android. Time will tell that the iPhone wears no clothes! I can put whatever freakin app I want on the Droid and I can go way outside our “Market” w/o jail-breaking anything. Good to see the 3GS finally catch up to the G1 though on hardware–I was wondering when that was gonna happen.
Who cares. Obama’s going to be out of the Whitehouse in 3.5 years because his time as President will go down in history as a fiasco and blunder by the Americans who voted him in.
I especially loved the time when he flubbed the hand-on-the-bible part…then “redid it underground”. When I heard that, I was waiting for the “do-doom-chhh” drums and cymbol sound to tell me it was a joke.
Oh wait, this has nothing to do with the story above.
If I remember correctly, when this work was first “published” by Fairey, the original photographer whose photo was used as the basis, was none-too-happy and created a bit of a stink about copyright infrinement… Perhaps that has something to do with Apple nixing this one?
Actually, the photographer, Mannie Garcia, isn’t part of the dispute. It’s the AP that that’s creating the stink.
As much as a fan of Apple that I am, i have to say that this reviewer is obviously high on something. One thing for certain, the reviewer also has their head in the sand if they think that this revered image of President Obama is obscene, offensive or ridiculing a public figure.
I hope that they reconsider their hasty and unfounded decision. I’d love to have the wallpaper on my iPhone.
I heard the artwork was plagiarized anyway….
Depends on whether the artwork was fair use. Since it’s the AP that’s complaining and not the photographer I’m inclined to think that it was fair use.
the problem here is that obama is a failed president who offers hope only to his cronies.
Change! Got any? I’m broke from failed socialist policies…
The “HOPE” image in question infringes on an AP copyright. I believe the artist was sued for it.
At least the AP claims that its copyright was infringed upon. It is fair use if the work isn’t primarily derivative. Lawyers are hard at work determining the answer in this case.
An artist knows not to open up a magazine, search for suitable photograph, and begin painting.
The artist knows he/she must ask permission first.
What Irony. Apple restricts images of President Narcissist and President Narcissist restricts any potential detractors from being admitted into his supposed Town Hall Meetings. He stacks the Town Hall Meetings with only Obamobots and pre-arranges what the questions will be. This is a true sign of a psychopathic narcissist and what the nazis did in 1930’s.
I think the operative word here should be ‘HOPELESS”. MY COMPANY HAS LAID OFF 110 PEOPLE SINCE PRESIDENT NARCISSIST TOOK OFFICE. MOST OF THEM IN THEIR 20′S AND 30′S. THIS MARXIST HAS SPENT 4 TIMES WHAT BUSH SPENT IN 8 YEARS IN JUST THE SPAN OF 12 WEEKS. HE HAS NOT KEPT A SINGLE PROMISE HE HAS MADE SINCE HE BEGAN RUNNING FOR OFFICE. A SIGN OF A PATHOLOGICAL LIAR. THE TRADEMARK OF A NARCISSIST.
And this is bad news? Lets HOPE the rest of the country wakes up and realized we’ve have elected a neophyte as president. Instead of encouraging, he is discouraging businesses by hiking taxes and increasing regulations. Whatever happened to the jobs he promised with the stimulus bill?
The Teleprompter In Chief indeed.
I own a business, my brother owns a business and have many friends who own businesses. Are taxes have not gone up. Your rhetoric and ignorance show when you complain about the stimulus package Bush created, Rep. voted for it and Obama pushed through.
It’s ignorant people like you who embarrass our country… and I’m a Republican telling you this.
First, I don’t buy for a minute that you are a Republican. Second, you obviously fail to understand that as I type this, the value of the dollars in your wallet are shrinking because of the patent crimminal overspending of this maniac in the White House. But if you still think I am off base and politicizing all this, just take a look at the video at http://www.inflation.us …..assuming you care about your family.
And maniacal spending on the Iraq war by our previous president isn’t having any impact on our economy? What I wanna know is: Where were all you teabaggers back when the country was wondering how the heck we were going to pay for invading Iraq? Know where I was? Protesting a war that turned out to be based on lies! I just wish so many Americans hadn’t bought into the BS of the Bush administration. Our country would be in much better shape right now. Safer too. I don’t know if the stimulus plan is the right thing to do or not, but at least it’s money that is being invested in our own country’s infrastructure… and not on foreign wars.
Sean,
You think our country is safe now???
LMAO!
Obama is doing the work of our enemies.
I thought this was obvious, but it’s been clear from the beginning that the Overlord in Cupertino determines what flies and what dies on his phone.
It’s the reason some of us haven’t inhaled the Kool-Aid.
Yes, the iPhone is gorgeous and the UI is marvelous, but when the company and it’s products are run by an overcharging, overcontrolling crime syndicate — people naturally look elsewhere.
Soup Nazi, meet software Nazi
/laughs at the walled garden
I am so glad Google embraces open source and doesn’t regulate what I should look at and what I shouldn’t with Android. Apple sometimes reminds me of China and recently Iran.
Change the word ‘HOPE’ to “MALAISE’ . President Narcissist has brought nothing but misery to the American people. Watch the video at http://www.inflation.us
I happen to agree with you, but posting the same link 3-4 times is not helping your cause.
It’s Shepard Fairey’s karma. I find the image offensive, not because it’s Obama, but because the hypocritical, property defacing, two-faced rip-off artist (and I use the term loosely, like a bowel-movement) behind it is disgusting. The precedent goes so far back and there are so many examples of misappropriation of other people’s artworks. To cite one example, there’s the Time magazine cover illustration of Albert Einstein which was based on a photograph of him. First it was a helluva lot more creative than a Fairey piece. Be that as it may, the illustrator lost the case when the photographer sued. Fairey’s no friend to artists, he gives them headaches. Companies do business with him at their own peril. Check out this article: http://www.art-.../Obey/index.htm
Meh – I already have the Obama poster on my iPhone. Downloaded it from Shepard Fairey’s website in January and made it my wallpaper for awhile.
The iPhone allows you to change your wallpaper without jailbreaking?
I will never put a political leader on my phone as some sort of alter to the cult of personality.
Good Lord, people.
This is the same company that just launched a PRIDE iPhone Wallpaper Gallery, with 100% of the proceeds going to support The Courage Campaign.
http://startmob...perGallery.html
it’s been said a million times before, but the fact of the matter is Apple is not consistent with its approval or denial of aps, putting people that develop for the platform at a huge risk. Developers spend time developing and cross their fingers when they submit for approval.
Apple needs to hire people with brains that can clearly decipher what is and is not within apples rules. Until then this story will repeat it’s self time and time again.
For the record this image has had it’s share of issues already. The poster is based off a press photo taken by an Associated Press (AP) photographer the AP decided it would be a good idea to sue Mr. Fairey
“A.P. officials contacted Mr. Fairey’s studio late last month demanding payment for the use of the photo and a portion of any money he makes from it.”
He in turn sued them claiming Fair Use. Full article here…
http://www.nyti...ign/10fair.html
So if anything the image should be rejected until the legal issues surrounding it are resolved.
I thought Obama was a Blackberry fan, Lol!
Really, who cares?
Because no white man was able to pass the test (the election) to be President, it would be wrong to have an application in the Apple Store for a black man. (Sotomayer logic).
Politicians (both parties) are mostly sleazy characters who mislead people and obfuscate the truth. Obama is very good at this. I say keep iPhone applications free of the sewage of political speech and art work.
Limiting political speech and art is sewage.
Spending taxpayers dollars limiting free speech is sewage. Spending tax dollars on art is sewage. Art should be self supporting otherwise it is sewage.
Apple’s support of Gore and Obama makes me ralph…but I believe any business has a right to conduct their business in a way that earns a profit.
Apple’s Left leaning support is an oxymorn.
This article has given me a great idea….
Change the “Hope” to “Dope!”
Or
“Where’s The Birth Certificate?”
I have an app with Obama’s face that has been sitting around waiting for four months. Emails to Apple have ridiculously yielded no response. I figured it was something like this.
All these stories about iPhone apps getting rejected from the App Store are getting old. Yes, TC- we get that the process for approving apps is broken. I’m sure you’ll let us know when they fix it. In the mean time, can we move on please?
So one of the people reviewing apps picked the wrong reason in the dropdown. Why are you making a big deal about it? Everything isn’t a conspiracy, you know.