Nine Inch Nails app update blocked by Apple
‘Questionable content’ chestnut rolled out once again
It’s that time of the week where Apple’s App Store approval system’s inconsistency rears its head, this time incurring the wrath of Nine Inch Nails front man Trent Reznor.
An update to the band’s nin: access application was rejected using the old ‘questionable content’ chestnut Apple repeatedly falls back on when it wimps out on more mature App Store content.
Reznor published Apple’s rejection letter on the band’s forum, which states references to The Downward Spiral as being unacceptable. The developer states that references were removed where possible, though the app’s inherent internet access naturally prohibits full self-censorship.
“Apple is not allowing us to make the current app more stable because there is ‘objectionable content’ online (yes on the internet),” the Null Corporation developer says. “So we are essentially not allowed to fix bugs unrelated to the issue. We removed the song The Downward Spiral from the server, hoping to appease apple and get this bug fix through. However I have yet to receive a reply.”
The Nine Inch Nail’s official forum also saw Reznor respond to his app’s rejection far more directly (asterisks deployed to protect delicate sensibilities).
“You can buy The Downward F*cking Spiral on iTunes, but you can’t allow an iPhone app that may have a song with a bad word somewhere in it,” Reznor says. “Geez, what if someone in the forum in our app says F*CK or C*NT? I suppose that also falls into indecent material. Hey Apple, I just got some SPAM about f*cking hot asian teens THROUGH YOUR MAIL PROGRAM. I just saw two guys having explicit anal s*x right there in Safari! On my iPhone!
“Come on Apple, think your policies through and for fuck’s sake get your app approval scenario together.”
Harsh, but he does make a good point.
