

NDrive GPS App Disappears from Apple App Store - asmithmd1
http://www.slashgear.com/ndrive-gps-app-disappears-from-apple-app-store-kill-switch-the-culprit-0893419/

======
jgrahamc
This article is a perfect time to lament the poor quality of many of these
'news' sites. Nowhere in the story does it say that Slashgear made any attempt
to contact Apple and ask about this situation. Apple has an entire media
department that you can call and ask (<http://www.apple.com/pr/>).

The worst case is that Apple will give you a no comment, or we'll get back to
you. That you can report. But here all we have is a sentence wasted burbling
_And considering that NDrive isn’t the only GPS application available on the
iPhone, or within the App Store proper, we’re not sure why Apple would choose
now, or this app, to pull that lever._

At the start of the article they claim _That would mostly be because Apple
hasn’t had any reason to use it_. Is that true? Did they ask Apple?

If you follow the blog chain backwards you'll come to someone who did call
Apple, and has a possible explanation for why the application was removed: _it
appears NDrive may not have fully licensed the map data used in the
application_.

The entire article would be much more interesting if they'd called Apple and
asked them a few questions. And then called NDrive and asked them about the
map licensing, or called Teledata and asked them. You know, actually done some
work towards the article rather than 'reporting' rumors.

Also, they need someone to look over their copy.

 _Several customers are reporting that the application called NDrive, which
was developed by a small team to be a GPS alternative._

What did the customers do? Also, I'm pretty sure this small team did not
develop an alternative to GPS. That would have required launching and
maintaining a large number of satellites.

 _And then subsequently pulled from customer’s iPhones as well._

One customer or many?

Some months ago I wrote a blog post about baggage tags used on airlines
(<http://blog.jgc.org/2009/08/whats-on-baggage-tag.html>). In it you'll see
documented the work it took (with a little help from a friend) to get the
answers I wanted.

And the other day I was writing something that appeared on The Times' web site
and needed information about the status of the BT site at Goonhilly
([http://timesonline.typepad.com/science/2010/06/sea-sand-
sun-...](http://timesonline.typepad.com/science/2010/06/sea-sand-sun-and-
science-a-geek-holiday.html)). I simply called BT's media relations and they
were very, very helpful. They even got me an answer on a day when half their
staff were off on a training course.

~~~
tomjen3
While it would be a benefit to this story, I don't see why anybody should have
a duty to write both sides of the story on their blog - I properly would have
written to Apple, but if they didn't give a good reason I can't fault the guy
for not posting it.

~~~
JoeAltmaier
Its called Journalism, and many deplore the lack of it on blogs.

~~~
tezmc
When did blogs become professional news organisations and therefore have to
adhere to standards of journalistic integrity?

They're just websites, anyone can put one up and say anything they like as
long as they don't break the law.

~~~
JoeAltmaier
Yes, but they don't get to be called Journalists. They are just wankers with a
keyboard.

~~~
jrockway
Kind of like people commenting on social news sites?

~~~
JoeAltmaier
Sort of - but with a responsibility to be fair and accurate. And on THIS site
at least, folks tend to offer links, or have pertinent experiences.

------
arn
This is not true. People still have the app.

See: [http://www.razorianfly.com/2010/07/08/did-apple-just-use-
the...](http://www.razorianfly.com/2010/07/08/did-apple-just-use-the-ios-kill-
switch/)

 _[Update] – Multiple users are reporting to us via Twitter and in the
comments section that NDrive is still present on both their iPhone and
respective computers, therefore we’re filing this one under: “Apple has -not-
used the iOS kill switch … yet”._

------
logic
The kill-switch URL isn't exactly secret: <https://iphone-
services.apple.com/clbl/unauthorizedApps>

Note the lack of any applications being listed there.

Seriously, this is an easy one to verify; a reporter wouldn't even need to
call Apple for a response. I'm no Apple fanboy, but there doesn't appear to be
much to see here.

------
yardie
There is a long gap between stuff that gets pulled from the Appstore and stuff
pulled from off your iPhone. In the later, stuff gets pulled from the store
all the time. Either it's broken, violates a license agreement, or is
malicious (ie. steals stuff from your addressbook). I've yet to encounter an
app that was taken off the iPhone. I do have apps that were taken from the
appstore.

Which is why I found this article a bit unconvincing. "Users reported...." How
many? 1? 10? 10000?

------
RexRollman
So when Apple ganks an application like this, do people automatically receive
a refund?

~~~
frou_dh
It doesn't concern the kill-switch, but I still have the tethering
application, NetShare, that was quickly banished from the App Store and still
installs and works fine.

~~~
jokermatt999
They didn't use the kill-switch on that at all, did they? I thought that was
just banned from the app store, but not removed.

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zyb09
This is seriously weird, I hope Apple has a good reason for this that goes
beyond 'we don't like this kind of apps anymore'. While Google also used it's
kill-switch recently, it was against malicious software, while this App
doesn't look particular harmful.

~~~
jrockway
It's harmful to the $7.99-a-month-for-GPS model.

(Of course, GPS navigation is already 100% free on Android. But only hippies
and communists use Linux, so...)

~~~
blhack
I'm not sure why you're getting downmodded...this is exactly why they pulled
google voice and exactly why they won't approve a grooveshark app.

------
EdwardCoffin
It's possible this may be due to false advertising. I bought the Canada maps
version on June 16 for $4.99, and it turned out to be a two week evaluation
edition, something that I did not see anywhere in the app description before
purchasing it.

Something on their support page made reference to a spurious expiry message,
so I thought this message might be a mistake; I wasn't sure until it actually
did expire at the end of the month. By the time I'd noticed they'd pulled it
from the store. The app was still on my iPad, and is still in my iTunes, so I
don't think Apple killed it with the switch.

------
risotto
Pure speculation but maybe NDrive is improperly licensing and distributing the
map data?

------
sadiq
If that turns out to be the case, it's interesting to contrast the two
different approaches in transparency that Apple and Google took in using their
kill switches.

~~~
masklinn
Turns out it isn't the case.

