FreedomBeacon.com)- Apple recently notified app developers that it would remove any apps or games from its App Store that hasn’t been updated in the last two years.
In an email sent to developers, Apple warned that apps that haven’t been “updated in a significant amount of time” would be removed if the developers don’t submit an update for review within 30 days.
If no update is submitted in that time, Apple will remove the app from sale in its App Store. However, any users who have already downloaded the app would still be able to access it.
Some affected game developers, however, argue that free games don’t require updates as they exist as “completed objects.” One app developer told The Verge that in the five years since his app was launched, he hasn’t gotten any reports that the app crashed.
Back in 2016, Apple had announced that it would begin removing abandoned apps from its App Store, giving developers thirty days to update the apps before Apple removed them. However, it is unclear if Apple continuously enforced this rule since announcing it six years ago or if the recent email sent was a new crackdown on old apps.
Apple’s App Store Improvements page explains that this is an “ongoing process of evaluating apps” and removing those that are either outdated, don’t function as intended, or aren’t following “current review guidelines.”
What is unclear, however, is whether Apple’s definition of “outdated” apps is based on how long it has been since the app was updated or on whether the app is incompatible with more recent versions of the operating system.
Earlier this month, Google announced that it would begin limiting the visibility of any app in its Play Store that doesn’t “target an API level within two years of the latest major Android release version.”
Android app developers have until November 1 to update their apps. If they can’t make the deadline, however, Google allows an option for developers to apply for a 6-month extension.
