iSinglePayer too "politically charged" for the App Store?
Indie iPhone developer Floatopian has hit out after its iSinglePayer app was rejected by Apple for being too "politically charged".
The app is a campaigning application focused on single-payer healthcare reform in the US - currently a hot topic thanks to the efforts of Barack Obama to pass a new law governing healthcare there.
According to its developer, iSinglePayer "displays charts and bullet points about single-payer health care systems, and it allows users to call members of congress. iSinglePayer even calculates your local congressperson using GPS, and displays the amount of money donated to each congressperson from the health sector."
However, following five weeks in Apple's submission process, the application was rejected this weekend, apparently over the phone. "The representative explained that the application was 'politically charged' and was rejected for this reason."
The news has predictably sparked a debate over censorship, while Floatopian draws attention to the fact that individual politicians can launch iPhone apps, but that developers wanting to express political views seemingly cannot.
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We can see why political apps might be seen as a can of worms by Apple, particularly if they focus on controversial topics in the US (if healthcare-focused campaigning apps were allowed, what about abortion, for example?).
However, with Apple deciding what is and isn't "politically charged", the issue looks set to continue rearing up until the company makes its policies clearer to developers.
