Apple Thoughts: Apple Redefines Limited Utility

For context purposes, you need to know the whole story of Pull My Finger. Not the gag, the application. Since I've already done a video on the topic, I'm going to recycle a bit of old content for all of you. (Warning: the language might be considered salty; no profanity is used, but there is a loose g___ d___ in there)

On Friday, I got an e-mail from Air-o-Matic saying that Apple had finally approved their app:

"Hi!

A while back, you requested and supported the rejected iPhone app, Pull My Finger. Well, we've been working diligently to get our phones to make strange bodily noises, and we're excited to announce that Apple has reversed their decision... Pull My Finger is in the app store!"

I'm happy for the guys at Air-o-Matic. They've finally gotten their app published, but the fact that it was delayed and is now published makes me ask the question: why was it rejected in the first place? According to various sources, the reason was that Apple was trying to define a genre for apps such as Pull My Finger, but that even opens up more questions. How do you define iBeer? As a drinking simulator? How about an electronic beverage substitute?

Let's face reality; Apple's reaction comes because they realized they'd have one hell of a time trying to explain their rationale and its inconsistency. Is it their right to reject apps from the App Store? Absolutely, but if they don't do it consistently, they're going to be wearing more than a few eggs on their faces and turning off many developers to the process altogether.