Apple: We like that app so much we're going to BAN it and then copy it as a feature.

[SunnyD]

Read the story of Camera+.

Here's your precious Apple... "Innovating" again.

Now before all the Apple fanzealots get their panties in a bunch, yes, Google is guilty of appropriating user features from the developer base and integrating them into the OS (Just look at ADW as a primary example). But at no point have I ever heard of Google banning an app from the market just to roll in that "feature" into the OS at a later time and pass it off as their own.

Last August, Apple pulled Camera+ from iTunes because its new “VolumeSnap” feature allegedly violated Apple’s iPhone Developer Program License Agreement by allowing users to shoot photos using the iPhone’s Up Volume button. In its rejection notice, Apple explained, “Your application cannot be added to the App Store because it uses iPhone volume buttons in a non-standard way, potentially resulting in user confusion.”

...

Earlier this week, Steve Jobs stood on a stage to announce a great new feature for the iPhone’s built-in camera app: the ability to take photos using the device’s Up Volume button, which Jobs heralded as a fantastic new way to take capture a moment with a photo quickly, without hunting around for the camera app and waiting for it to load. In other words, one of Apple’s big new ideas is precisely the one for which it banned Camera+ last year.

Another case of this curious behavior surfaced this week, as The Register reported the strikingly similar tale of Greg Hughes’ Wi-Fi Sync app, which Apple rejected outright for its ability to sync iTunes music wirelessly to an iPhone using a local wireless network.

On Monday, Apple unveiled, what else, a wireless syncing feature for moving music from iTunes to iOS devices — and, what’s more, it used a logo that’s practically the same as the one Hughes used for Wi-Fi Sync (available in the Cydia store for apps that can run on jailbroken iPhones).

 

[Zen0]

Corporations are on your side!

 

[TheStu]

In both cases, though more for Wifi-sync than camera+, it isn't like Apple saw the app submissions, and said 'Ooh, what a great idea we can steal that has never occured to us before'. And this also assumes that the app review guys have any inkling at all about what the software engineers are working on. Apple isn't just outwardly secretive. I am not saying this absolves them, it definitely smacks of underhandedness, but don't immediately assume that it was done with the malicious intent of stealing someone's idea.

For example, we don't know if Apple didn't call the devs on both and offer them money (that they couldn't reveal due to NDAs) or anything like that (though they probably didn't).

 

[SunnyD]

In both cases, though more for Wifi-sync than camera+, it isn't like Apple saw the app submissions, and said 'Ooh, what a great idea we can steal that has never occured to us before'. And this also assumes that the app review guys have any inkling at all about what the software engineers are working on. Apple isn't just outwardly secretive. I am not saying this absolves them, it definitely smacks of underhandedness, but don't immediately assume that it was done with the malicious intent of stealing someone's idea.

For example, we don't know if Apple didn't call the devs on both and offer them money (that they couldn't reveal due to NDAs) or anything like that (though they probably didn't).

The article does state that Apple did ask for the Wifi-sync app author's resume... but that's besides the point. If the app exists BEFORE the feature gets rolled in, why bother to ban the app other than to preserve YOUR revenue stream? If it becomes an OS feature, I suppose then they run the risk of doing what Microsoft did with IE, but in all honesty, I'd say this runs afoul of antitrust more than what IE did, more directly.

 

[roguerower]

Just another reason why I will never buy an Apple product. The shit they get away with because they're still seen as the "underdog" is absurd.

 

[MotionMan]

Feh.

No different than MS would have done if they had the control Apple does. As it is, MS has gone as far as they could get away with (and a bit further ) Two wrongs don't make a right, but singling out one company for something that is common practice is disingenuous.

That being said, please feel free to not buy Apple products.

It is interesting that this was posted in GG&P, and not All Things Apple. Trying to preach to the choir a bit?

MotionMan

 

[SunnyD]

Feh.

No different than MS would have done if they had the control Apple does. As it is, MS has gone as far as they could get away with (and a bit further ) Two wrongs don't make a right, but singling out one company for something that is common practice is disingenuous.

That being said, please feel free to not buy Apple products.

It is interesting that this was posted in GG&P, and not All Things Apple. Trying to preach to the choir a bit?

MotionMan

It involves features for mobile devices, hence GG&P. I also provided commentary that Google has done similar (yet not going so far as Apple has in claiming the innovation as their own as a selling point/feature) in the OP, as well as comparing it to what Microsoft has done with IE in a separate post.

Comparing it to what Microsoft might have done, however, is even more disingenuous.

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

Let's put it this way. Their developer rules specifically state that you can't put Easter eggs into the app without documenting what they do and that you can reassign the hardware buttons to other functions. Both of which Camera+ did. Also, windows mobile 7 has both capabilities. It could be that customers wanted easy access to the camera app and that it seemed logically to change the volume up button as a shutter button. It's not like apple is in a sealed room where they hear and see nothing. They adapt and listen to their customers.

 

[finbarqs]

put it this way: camera + you had to pay for, this update is for free!

 

[Aikouka]

Apple is almost always really picky about you reassigning their buttons. I'm pretty sure that the whole volume-up thing being a default will still confuse people even though Apple is implementing it . Personally, I would much prefer having that feature as it's a real pain to hit the soft-button when you're taking a picture at a weird angle (like when I was snapping a picture of my TV's model number).

 

[MotionMan]

It involves features for mobile devices, hence GG&P.

It was about a thing APPLE. You just wanted to preach to the choir and avoid being put in your place by the people who like Apple products.

I also provided commentary that Google has done similar (yet not going so far as Apple has in claiming the innovation as their own as a selling point/feature) in the OP, as well as comparing it to what Microsoft has done with IE in a separate post.

Yeah, so why the venom against Apple if others have done similar things, and did them BEFORE Apple did?

Comparing it to what Microsoft might have done, however, is even more disingenuous.

No, it isn't, since that was not the point of my post. The point was that Apple is no different than any other such company (as you pointed out re: Google and MS), so this hardly warrants a thread about it.

MotionMan

 

[Bman123]

Apple is ridiculous, seriously this is pathetic

 

[Glitchny]

They've been doing this for awhile, there are many cases of it being done with other apps. Hell when they announced iOS5 there was a link on gizmodo(i think) to the "list of apps in danger" due to apple taking their features and then removing them from the appstore.

 

[Deeko]

It was about a thing APPLE. You just wanted to preach to the choir and avoid being put in your place by the people who like Apple products.

So you think that nothing Apple related should go in here? That's not the purpose of this forum. This forum and the Apple forum overlaps in some ways, but there is absolutely nothing wrong with posting about Apple's actions in mobile in this forum. That's what its here for.

 

[Mr. Pedantic]

put it this way: camera + you had to pay for, this update is for free!

Say you have an iPhone 4. 99c for Camera+...or $500-700 for an iPhone 5 with the feature built in?

Yeah.

 

[Deeko]

Say you have an iPhone 4. 99c for Camera+...or $500-700 for an iPhone 5 with the feature built in?

Yeah.

Its an iOS 5 feature, it will come to the iPhone 4.

 

[MotionMan]

So you think that nothing Apple related should go in here? That's not the purpose of this forum. This forum and the Apple forum overlaps in some ways, but there is absolutely nothing wrong with posting about Apple's actions in mobile in this forum. That's what its here for.

There is a forum for all things Apple (not "most" or "some"). Thus, if it has to do with Apple, it should go there. I did not set up the forums, I just live in them.

In any event, this is not some sort of hybrid subject. This is ENTIRELY about the actions of Apple (the company), so it should go there and not here.

MotionMan

 

[badb0y]

Camera+ was pulled a long time ago, I know this because I wanted to buy it. Apparently Apple is anal about Apps reassigning buttons. The Wifi sync app is only available to jailbroken iOS devices and it costs $9.99, how many people even have jailbroken devices?

I think it's nice that Apple is learning from these developers and implementing the functionality into the iPhone itself but I also beleive they should credit the original developers, something like they did with the notification center - if you don't know Apple actually hired the developer to help design notification center on iOS.

 

[Deeko]

There is a forum for all things Apple (not "most" or "some"). Thus, if it has to do with Apple, it should go there. I did not set up the forums, I just live in them.

In any event, this is not some sort of hybrid subject. This is ENTIRELY about the actions of Apple (the company), so it should go there and not here.

MotionMan

Quite simply - there is overlap. They are separate subforums that happen to cover some of the same information. While it would be correct to put this thread there, it is just as correct to put it here. Read the thread about the forum name change - moderators explicitly stated this. This thread relates to the software and platform of a mobile device OS....it is fine here.

If you want to throw a fit that team Apple isn't here to defend them, do it in All About Apple. That doesn't change the fact that you are wrong in your claim that this thread doesn't belong here.

 

[Glitchny]

Camera+ was pulled a long time ago, I know this because I wanted to buy it. Apparently Apple is anal about Apps reassigning buttons. The Wifi sync app is only available to jailbroken iOS devices and it costs $9.99, how many people even have jailbroken devices?

I think it's nice that Apple is learning from these developers and implementing the functionality into the iPhone itself but I also beleive they should credit the original developers, something like they did with the notification center - if you don't know Apple actually hired the developer to help design notification center on iOS.

It was originally offered on the App store, or submitted I should say. And Apple denied it, so the dev put it on the jailbroken store because there was no other option. Then Apple implemented the functionality themselves.

 

[akugami]

The problem with this thread is the title makes it seem as if Apple was the only company who "steals" ideas from its own developers and implements it. As the OP notes, Google does it too but the thread title makes it seem like Apple is the only one doing it.

The major difference between Apple and others is in how they go about their "stealing." Apple are complete douches while a company like Google doesn't say anything. They just pop in the feature. But even if Google didn't ban your app, if they implement the same features in the base OS, your app is dead in the water anyways. They might as well have banned it.

Also, some of the "stealing" is ridiculous when such features have been in other devices prior to apps with similar features appearing on iOS.

 

[Mr. Pedantic]

Its an iOS 5 feature, it will come to the iPhone 4.

Ah ok. I thought iOS would only be rolled out on iPhone 5, at least for a while.

 

[foghorn67]

The problem with this thread is the title makes it seem as if Apple was the only company who "steals" ideas from its own developers and implements it. As the OP notes, Google does it too but the thread title makes it seem like Apple is the only one doing it.

The major difference between Apple and others is in how they go about their "stealing." Apple are complete douches while a company like Google doesn't say anything. They just pop in the feature. But even if Google didn't ban your app, if they implement the same features in the base OS, your app is dead in the water anyways. They might as well have banned it.

Also, some of the "stealing" is ridiculous when such features have been in other devices prior to apps with similar features appearing on iOS.

How in the heck do you get that impression. RIGHT AWAY, it says Google is guilty of the same.
It's more relevant to discuss what Apple did, thanks to the recent iOS5 announcement.

 

[YoungGun21]

There is a forum for all things Apple (not "most" or "some"). Thus, if it has to do with Apple, it should go there. I did not set up the forums, I just live in them.

In any event, this is not some sort of hybrid subject. This is ENTIRELY about the actions of Apple (the company), so it should go there and not here.

MotionMan

u mad bro??

This is about the actions of Apple on the iPhone.

Also, this is ridiculous. What is this called again....? Oh yea, that's right, theft.

 

[akugami]

How in the heck do you get that impression. RIGHT AWAY, it says Google is guilty of the same.
It's more relevant to discuss what Apple did, thanks to the recent iOS5 announcement.

Read the thread title. Read the first line of the post.

Any other questions?