Update: Just a day after this report about multiple developers gaming the App Store with cloned apps, Apple has removed many of the ones that were pointed out by TechCrunch’s Romain Dillet.
A new report from TechCrunch today looks into how some app developers game the App Store by submitting multiple versions of the same (or very similar) app. While it looks like these apps are breaking the App Store rules, developers of these apps defend the strategy as fair game.
TC’s investigative report calls out both developers using this strategy of submitting multiple versions of the same app as well as Apple for not enforcing its policies.
One example is the developer TextMe, Inc. who has three different apps that serve mostly the same purpose. Notably, they all even use the same screenshots in the App Store.
However, TextMe believes they are abiding by the App Store rules and use the three apps as marketing and competitive strategies.
But if you look at the App Store screenshots, the company doesn’t even bother changing the screenshots or marketing copy.
The report looks into several other developers who use the same strategy as TextMe. At the end of the day, Apple could solve the problem by defining rules like these more clearly and enforcing them consistently.
This latest report comes after Apple has taken heat for hosting a controversial Saudi-based iOS app called Absher. Last month Facebook, Google, and more were caught abusing Apple’s Enterprise Certificate program.
