

This is how Google kills your app - thijser
https://medium.com/@joshliptzin/this-is-how-google-kills-your-app-c1abad30eb25?hn

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thijser
Same here, Google unpublished one of our 10 million+ downloaded apps without
warning. I appealed using the option to upload a PDF file to have a 2 page
description of our processes and efforts to deal with user generated content,
only to get the standard canned response "We (...) will not be reinstating
your app. This decision is final (...) We are unable to comment further on the
specific policy basis for this removal (...)".

Needless to say, this is a very disappointing way to be dealt with when this
concerns a significant revenue stream.

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duncan_bayne
This may seem like a rude question, but - why would you build a business that
significantly depends upon the arbitrary decision of the owner of a walled
garden? I mean, it's not like this hasn't happened many times in the past. Why
would you invest your money to build on such a risky platform as Android or
iOS?

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thijser
I don't think the question why we develop for Android is relevant here. The
fact that the two most important smartphone platforms are walled gardens is
interesting in itself. (Google has for long claimed that Android is more open
than iOS, but with the current state of things where not being published on
Google Play means your app doesn't exist, this claim is not really valid
anymore).

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duncan_bayne
Okay, perhaps a more general question then, for people who develop for walled
gardens of all types: how can you justify the investment, when your app might
be cut off at the knees tomorrow?

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thijser
I would rather ask the opposite question: Is it possible to develop a fast
growing mobile service without developing an app on iOS/Android? How could
Instagram have grown the way it did without their iOS and Android apps? I'm
sure people occasionally post copyrighted content as a picture on Instagram,
were they just lucky not to get pulled by Google for copyright infringement?

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duncan_bayne
They're not opposite, they're related.

Put another way: you have $X to invest. Why would you invest in a mobile
service that requires a native app, when the only viable 'markets' for same
are walled gardens with arbitrary rules?

Courts exist in capitalist societies to provide the rule of law, and thus the
stability, required for investment. There is no such thing in the Android or
iOS world.

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us0r
"This is actually the second time we’ve been through this process."

So you are building/publishing grey area apps and are shocked when they give
you the boot.

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jliptzin
Gray area? This is a dating app just like Tinder/Grindr etc. It's been live on
iOS for almost 2 years with no issues and a high rating. It's also rated high
maturity (ages 18+), and we are talking about occasional nudity here, not
pornography, and we work hard to take down the nudity as soon as we see it.
Our mods work hard, it's a tough job, and it sucks that after all the hard
work they put in, the app still gets abruptly removed without explanation.

The point is that if Google would just take 5 extra minutes to tell us what
they found that was in violation, then everyone would be better off, instead
of having to go through this cycle of guessing what the problem is and
resubmitting while in the process losing all reviews and rankings.

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_random_
Only Flappy Bird clones are welcome.

