Apple rescinds version change App Store ban

Apple's iPhone caprice continues.

Little more than a week after it banned version 1.3 of return7's CastCatcher internet radio service from the iPhone App Store, Apple has now decided the app doesn't warrant banning after all.

return7 announced the reprieve on the company blog late last night.

Versions 1.0, 1.1, and 1.2 of the audio streaming service all made it into the App Store without a hitch. But when return7 submitted version 1.3, it was hit with the Jesus Slap. "CastCatcher Internet Radio cannot be posted to the App Store because it is transferring excessive volumes of data over the cellular network, which as outlined in the iPhone SDK Agreement section 3.3.15, is prohibited," Apple told the company.

Presumably, Apple meant that earlier versions of the app were transferring excessive volumes of data over the cellular network. But version 1.2 remained in the App Store - as did countless other streaming apps, including Pandora, AOL Radio, Tuner, FStream, and WunderRadio.

return7 was not pleased. The company immediately resubmitted the app and, in an email, asked Apple to change its mind.

Inexplicably, Apple has changed its mind. return7 CEO Amro Mousa tells The Reg the app was resubmitted with "minor cosmetic changes." But the core code was unchanged. "I think it might just have been a mixup on their end and I'm glad they came through for us," Mousa says. "It sets a positive precedent."

That's one way of looking at it. Famously, Apple reserves the right to ban apps from the store whenever it likes, and developers are required to submit all version changes for approval. ®