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Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

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Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#241

Post by aardvarkr »

blatherard wrote: post #142

I thought I should look at the App Store and see what this app is doing in comparison to similar apps. The logo is basically a big pill and the tagline "Powerful keep-awake utility" which is clearly alluding to the drug. https://imgur.com/a/RJXHaBa This was consistent with the feedback the author received: "[the] app appears to promote inappropriate use of controlled substances. Specifically, your app name and icon i…

"1.4.3 Apps that encourage consumption of tobacco and vape products, illegal drugs, or excessive amounts of alcohol are not permitted on the App Store. Apps that encourage minors to consume any of these substances will be rejected. Facilitating the sale of marijuana, tobacco, or controlled substances (except for licensed pharmacies) isn’t allowed."

Taking this literally, is an amphetamine an illegal drug? It’s a class of Schedule II drugs that are legal in all 50 states.

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#242

Post by antiterra »

tgsovlerkhgsel wrote: post #128
mmaunder wrote: post #23

You’re angry. I’ve felt this in a trademark lawsuit. You think the world should get behind you and change the corrupt system. My advice is to immediately rebrand as gracefully and effectively as possible and use all that activist energy to effect the transition. They kind of have a point which doesn’t make them right, but they hold all the cards and you will lose this one and regret the wasted bandwidth.

> They kind of have a point They don't (the claim is the app promotes drug use, which it doesn't), and it's quite likely that it's a reviewer mistake that will be overturned once the stink on social media gets big enough to reach the right person.

I think the argument, however tenuous, is that naming a utility after a drug generates a positive association for that drug. It’s not even so much that Apple has to believe this as much as there’s an elevated potential for negative PR. This sort of thing is given even more scrutiny with food items:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cocaine_(drink)

https://m.riverfronttimes.com/foodblog/2010/01/20/the-beerte...

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#243

Post by wasdfff »

blatherard wrote: post #142

I thought I should look at the App Store and see what this app is doing in comparison to similar apps. The logo is basically a big pill and the tagline "Powerful keep-awake utility" which is clearly alluding to the drug. https://imgur.com/a/RJXHaBa This was consistent with the feedback the author received: "[the] app appears to promote inappropriate use of controlled substances. Specifically, your app name and icon i…

Considering the context can be helpful. Apple has their caffeinate utility, seems to me amphetamine is an appropriate name for a more powerful “stimulant” utility, given the naming convention Apple themselves have laid out.

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#244

Post by AsyncAwait »

bdcravens wrote: post #200
chipotle_coyote wrote: post #187

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I see there's been (at least some) downvoting of this comment, but it's not irrelevant. Pointing out that other companies have the same problem doesn't give Apple a "get out of criticism free" card, but it's worth keeping in mind that Apple gets singled out for this kind of criticism in part because they promote their efforts to be better than the norm in this regard, which invites a more critical eye.

Every time I post that link it gets downvoted. Yet every time I post it, it's in response to someone implying Apple is uniquely evil. I certainly don't feel they deserve a pass, but it's such a ubiquitous problem that it's almost pointless to use as a talking point. (It's like saying Politician X is inherently bad because they accept corporate money)

> implying Apple is uniquely evil.

It's not that they're uniquely evil, rather that they don't have the moral authority to lecture.

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#245

Post by throwawaysea »

We really shouldn’t normalize the kind of thought control, censorship, and morality policing that underlies this Apple guideline. We need to break up and heavily regulate any company that is so powerful that there is effectively no choice but to cave to their demands. These companies, like with the Apple-Google App Store duopoly, are powerful enough such that even though they are technically private, their actions are as direct and impactful as the government enforcing such rules.

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#246

Post by rasputin243 »

Unklejoe wrote: post #31
fishnchips wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nitrogen is an element, and a very common one at that. Explosives are a fringe use case. Amphetamine on the other hand has only one very well defined use case. I get the reference to another similar app (Caffeine) but this is a step too far, indeed portraying a dangerous drug in a positive light.

> Amphetamine on the other hand has only one very well defined use case. Are you referring to the widespread use of it as an ADHD medication for children all throughout the nation?

And adults as well

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#247

Post by zepto »

bdcravens wrote: post #131
dreamcompiler wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

https://nlpc.org/2020/12/30/report-uighur-slaves-forced-to-w...

Apple and many others: "In all, ASPI’s research has identified 82 foreign and Chinese companies potentially directly or indirectly benefiting from the use of Uyghur workers outside Xinjiang through abusive labour transfer programs as recently as 2019: Abercrombie & Fitch, Acer, Adidas, Alstom, Amazon, Apple, ASUS, BAIC Motor, Bestway, BMW, Bombardier, Bosch, BYD, Calvin Klein, Candy, Carter’s, Cerruti 1881, Changan A…

I don’t see anyone complaining about Occulus, Google or Microsoft’s labor practices on threads about them.

Perhaps that will change if people read this list.

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#248

Post by teej »

bambax wrote: post #210
Bodell wrote: post #119

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Honestly if your name your product stupid things I would think that some of us might be choosing not to download your product as a result. And if a store decides not to sell your product because of this it’s really their prerogative. Saying you violated their terms with impunity for 6 years doesn’t mean they lose the right to correct the mistake. This name is pretty rings rather badly in my ears, though I’m not offen…

> I’m not offended by the word “fuck” but I don’t really want to buy products that are named that. Then don't. How is this relevant? They say the app has been downloaded 500,000 times, so many people are fine with the name. These stories keep coming; they should remind us that nothing is more precious than the open web, and all those stores or walled gardens, their "rules" and vague TOS are the ennemy.

500k may seem like a lot, but it’s not in the context of the Mac App Store. Apple has sold over 100M Macs in the time this app has been around. Also, Apple’s policies are distinctly not driven by “if enough people are fine with it”.

Apple’s policies are bullshit, don’t get me wrong, but let’s not act like download numbers give the developer any leverage.

Re: Apple has threatened to remove Amphetamine from the App Store

#250

Post by TedDoesntTalk »

DubiousPusher wrote: post #112
mmaunder wrote: post #23

You’re angry. I’ve felt this in a trademark lawsuit. You think the world should get behind you and change the corrupt system. My advice is to immediately rebrand as gracefully and effectively as possible and use all that activist energy to effect the transition. They kind of have a point which doesn’t make them right, but they hold all the cards and you will lose this one and regret the wasted bandwidth.

> They kind of have a point How is just using the word or a charicature of it encouraging drug use? This puritanism is a mind disease.

Agreed.

Learning not to be offended by things is a skill that is worth learning.

It is also the road the tolerance.

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