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App Submissions On Google Play Now Reviewed By Staff, Include Age-Based Ratings

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Re: App Submissions On Google Play Now Reviewed By Staff, Include Age-Based Ratings

#31
post #7

after getting 100k active users, and over 2million sessions per week, which was 1 year after submitting my app, google play suspended my app without warning, and i lost all. they were right, i didn't accurately follow their terms, but if they reviewed my app once submitted a year ago, that could've been avoided. it was a bitter experience for me, and i decided to port my app to iOS. i heard iOS provides warnings atle…

> . i heard iOS provides warnings atleast.

Not necessarily. If you blatantly disregards their terms, then your app will be rejected for sure. Now, if the issue is more nuanced, then it could take some time.

Source: I developed an app that, among other things, could let people know about DIU checkpoints (not in the US, mind you). It survived for more than a year in the store, only getting an email from Apple when we changed it from free (with ads) to a paid app, returning more revenue in a month than the past months put together (which nevertheless was enough to pay the monthly office rent).

Instead of engaging Apple, we decided to pull the app ourselves from the store.

We did get an email from an actual person, instead of getting the app pulled from the store with no explanation. I also guess that, had we decided to discuss things with Apple, that we could have reached some sort of agreement. We'll never know, but that's what I inferred from the tone of the email (surprisingly friendly, mind you).

Re: App Submissions On Google Play Now Reviewed By Staff, Include Age-Based Ratings

#32
post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you think Apple will provide a more cooperative experience you are mistaken. I've built apps for years and many times a short discussion with Google allowed me to re-post an app with some modifications. Unless you are making apple SERIOUS revenue (think high6 to 7 figures) they will shut you down without even a response.

"I've builds apps for years and many times a short discussion with Google allowed me to re-post an app with some modifications." The vast, vast, vast majority of people are not able to find a person at Google to have that discussion with in the first place. "Unless you are making apple SERIOUS revenue (think high6 to 7 figures) they will shut you down without even a response." Apple tells you before your app goes liv…

> Apple tells you before your app goes live.

Look at the situation with PCalc and Transmit. Both apps which offered a killer feature, got approved by review and even featured by the editorial team, then pulled after having been on the front page of the App Store.

Re: App Submissions On Google Play Now Reviewed By Staff, Include Age-Based Ratings

#33
post #22

I noticed they are working with ClassInd but are not clear how. I really hope this won't open the door to censorship on Android, one of the reasons why I make mobile games is exactly to circunvent ClassInd (as the article calls it). Here in Brazil, to release any entertainment product (even live Circus Shows are included on this), you must first ask the Ministry of Justice to give you a rating, the process, specially…

> also, like I said, I make mobile apps to avoid that law, what I do is that I have a Brazil company, a Swiss company, and then I make the Swiss company, hire the Brazil company to create software for hire, then the Swiss company that "create" the completed entertainment software, and sells it

Why do it in Switzerland, instead of say, US Delaware?

Re: App Submissions On Google Play Now Reviewed By Staff, Include Age-Based Ratings

#35
post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you think Apple will provide a more cooperative experience you are mistaken. I've built apps for years and many times a short discussion with Google allowed me to re-post an app with some modifications. Unless you are making apple SERIOUS revenue (think high6 to 7 figures) they will shut you down without even a response.

"I've builds apps for years and many times a short discussion with Google allowed me to re-post an app with some modifications." The vast, vast, vast majority of people are not able to find a person at Google to have that discussion with in the first place. "Unless you are making apple SERIOUS revenue (think high6 to 7 figures) they will shut you down without even a response." Apple tells you before your app goes liv…

> The vast, vast, vast majority of people are not able to find a person at Google to have that discussion with in the first place.

If you are spending any significant time/resources developing apps, then you should invest a bit of time in networking. Go to conferences, and meet these people. They aren't that hard to find.

Re: App Submissions On Google Play Now Reviewed By Staff, Include Age-Based Ratings

#36
Wasn't the point of creating walled-garden app stores the notion that it created checks and balances to prevent malware and bad user experiences from getting on people's devices? Wasn't that the entire reason we were supposed to be fine with the notion that we'd be giving up a portion of revenue to be able to get onto users devices in pretty much the only way the vast majority of our users understood how to do?

In other words, "you had ONE job, app stores, ONE JOB."

Re: App Submissions On Google Play Now Reviewed By Staff, Include Age-Based Ratings

#37
post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"I've builds apps for years and many times a short discussion with Google allowed me to re-post an app with some modifications." The vast, vast, vast majority of people are not able to find a person at Google to have that discussion with in the first place. "Unless you are making apple SERIOUS revenue (think high6 to 7 figures) they will shut you down without even a response." Apple tells you before your app goes liv…

> Apple tells you before your app goes live. Look at the situation with PCalc and Transmit. Both apps which offered a killer feature, got approved by review and even featured by the editorial team, then pulled after having been on the front page of the App Store.

What on earth could be wrong with a calculator app?

Re: App Submissions On Google Play Now Reviewed By Staff, Include Age-Based Ratings

#39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Apple tells you before your app goes live. Look at the situation with PCalc and Transmit. Both apps which offered a killer feature, got approved by review and even featured by the editorial team, then pulled after having been on the front page of the App Store.

What on earth could be wrong with a calculator app?

It put a calculator in a widget in the notifications area. http://techcrunch.com/2014/10/30/apple-no-longer-rejecting-c...

Re: App Submissions On Google Play Now Reviewed By Staff, Include Age-Based Ratings

#40
post #22

I noticed they are working with ClassInd but are not clear how. I really hope this won't open the door to censorship on Android, one of the reasons why I make mobile games is exactly to circunvent ClassInd (as the article calls it). Here in Brazil, to release any entertainment product (even live Circus Shows are included on this), you must first ask the Ministry of Justice to give you a rating, the process, specially…

> also, like I said, I make mobile apps to avoid that law, what I do is that I have a Brazil company, a Swiss company, and then I make the Swiss company, hire the Brazil company to create software for hire, then the Swiss company that "create" the completed entertainment software, and sells it Why do it in Switzerland, instead of say, US Delaware?

1) Some of the investing co-founders already lived in Switzerland

2) Some of the non-investing co-founders lived in Switzerland before, or would not mind living there in the future.

3) Switzerland, as bizarrely my phrase might sound, is more free than US, with laws regarding corporations easier to understand, and less crazy problems, for example no extremely stupid patent and copyright laws like US have.

So, in case US corporations get sue-happy against us (like they always do against each other), the best they can do is sue us in Switzerland, and there the law will be usually in our side (instead of siding with copyright/patent/whatever trolls)

Also we did check how much would cost us, including hiring the appropriate lawyers and accountants, to setup our stuff in Delaware vs Switzerland, and Switzerland was cheaper.

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