New York:
Apple has started banning many applications for its iPhone that featuresexually suggestive material, including photos of women in bikinis andlingerie, a move that came as an abrupt surprise to developers who hadbeen profiting from such programs.
The company's decision to remove the applications from its App Store over the last few days indicates that it is not interested in giving up its tight control over the software available there, even as competitors like Google take a more hands-off approach.
When asked about the change, Apple said it was responding to complaints from App Store users.
"Whenever we receive customer complaints about objectionable content we review them," Trudy Muller, a spokeswoman for Apple, said in a statement. "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."
Among the victims of the purge was a game called SlideHer, a puzzle that challenged users to reassemble a photograph of a scantily clad actress. Another, Sexy Scratch Off, depicted a woman whose dress could be whisked away at the swipe of a finger, revealing her undergarments. Such programs often appeared on the store's list of most-downloaded apps, which are a common way for iPhone and iPod Touch owners to discover new ones.
Analysts said the apparent change in policy may have been prompted by the planned release late next month of the company's newest device, the iPad.
The company is hoping that the iPad will be a hit with families and as an educational tool in schools - which could be a hard sell if the catalog of programs available for the device is cluttered with racy applications.
"At the end of the day, Apple has a brand to maintain," said Gene Munster, an analyst at Piper Jaffray who keeps a close eye on the company. "And the bottom line is they want that image to be squeaky clean."
The iPad will run the same applications that work on the iPhone and iPod Touch, which demonstrated that consumers were willing to pay for software that turned their devices into gaming machines, e-readers and navigation systems. The Touch has been especially popular with children and teenagers.
"The reality is that the iPad is going to be a big platform for apps," said Munster. "It raises the bar for Apple in terms of policing what goes into the App Store."
Last June, Apple introduced parental controls and ratings to help keep sex-themed applications away from children. But Munster said that the volume of such apps - which he estimated made up as much as 5 percent of the more than 140,000 apps in the App Store - might have surpassed a level Apple was comfortable with.
Many software developers have long complained about Apple's strict screening process and, at times, seemingly arbitrary decisions about what was acceptable in the App Store. The company's latest move, which was first reported by TechCrunch, did little to change their minds.
Fred Clarke, co-president of a small software company called On the Go Girls, which made Sexy Scratch Off, said that as of Monday all 50 of his company's applications were no longer available. They included an application in which a woman wearing a swimsuit appeared to wipe finger marks from the iPhone's screen with a rag and spray bottle.
"I'm shocked," said Clarke, who said the company had not had a problem with its applications since the first one went on sale last June. "We're showing stuff that's racier than the Disney Channel, but not by much."
Clarke said his company had been earning thousands of dollars a day from the App Store. "It's very hard to go from making a good living to zero," he said. "This goes farther than sexy content. For developers, how do you know you aren't going to invest thousands into a business only to find out one day you've been cut off?"
Clarke said the company would still continue to develop applications for the iPhone and iPod Touch, but would explore alternative platforms, including Google's Android.
Chris Camacho, director of Giant Mobile, which created iPhone and iPod Touch applications including SlideHer, said his company was "trying to get a little more guidance about what would constitute compliance" with the rules.
Camacho said the company would probably not shift significant resources to other mobile platforms, like Android. "We haven't had much success on that platform," he said. "The Apple model is working for us, so we would prefer to continue working with them."
Not everyone was critical of Apple's stance. Wally Chang, founder of Donoma Games, which does not make sexual applications, said he welcomed the changes. He said he hoped the culling of the catalog would improve the visibility of lesser-known applications.
"There just seems to be too many of these really simple applications that do nothing but show pictures of girls in bikinis or in suggestive, adult poses," he said. "It's cluttering up the App Store."
Chang acknowledged that Apple's policies for what it deemed acceptable seemed a little opaque at times.
"Apple needs to be more transparent in how they are applying their policies and communicate that to developers," he said. "Sports Illustrated still has an application available. How come that hasn't been pulled?"
Indeed, a Sports Illustrated application tied to its annual swimsuit issue was still available for download on Monday, as was one from Playboy. A Sports Illustrated spokesman, Scott Novak, declined to discuss its app.
Some developers and analysts wonder if the Android Market, Google's version of the App Store, will end up becoming a refuge for sexually themed applications. The store's programs work only on phones running Android, which so far are much less popular than Apple's products.
A Google representative said the company wanted to "reduce friction and remove barriers that make it difficult for developers to make apps available to users." To that end, Android applications are treated similarly to YouTube videos, which are not screened before they are posted. Apps can be removed if they violate various policies, and users can flag material that they deem inappropriate, giving guidance to others.
Daniel Klaus, who recently co-created a multimillion-dollar fund to foster the development of applications for the iPad, said Apple had challenges ahead of it.
"It's an incredibly fine line they have to walk to keep the developers happy and at the same time grow the ecosystem," Klaus said. "It's going to be very interesting to see how they continue do that while clamping down on some of the areas that are not in line with the direction they want to go."