Apple Bans Porn Application

Over the past few months, there have been many discussions about the control that Apple exerts over the apps developed for iPhone. The review process is not perfect, and Apple has gotten a lot of flak for allowing and suspending various apps. Steve Jobs and co. have left the door open for shutting down any app that does not fit in with Apple’s overall vision for its app marketplace. The latest application to get shut down is Hottest Girls. Hottest Girls is essentially a soft porn application for iPhone. It contains pictures that some may deem inappropriate. To my and many other folks’ surprise, the app got through and got approved at first. That could’ve signaled a shift in Apple’s policy towards soft porn apps. But the app was removed later, and we started hearing conflicting stories. Here is what the developer had to say:

The Hottest Girls app is temporarily sold out. The server usage is extremely high because of the popularity of this app. Thus, by not distributing the app, we can prevent our servers from crashing.

But Apple was not going to have any of it:

The developer of this application added inappropriate content directly from their server after the application had been approved and distributed, and after the developer had subsequently been asked to remove some offensive content. This was a direct violation of the terms of the iPhone Developer Program. The application is no longer available on the App Store

So who’s right here? In one hand, we have an app that may not be appropriate for a lot of folks. It’s also going to be a headache for corporations that are using iPhone for business. On the other hand, we were supposed to be done with these back and forth action with the release of iPhone 3.0 OS. I tend to side with Apple at this point. The iPhone platform is too valuable to allow inappropriate applications to sneak their way in. We all want freedom to use any app we want (be it porn or any other app). At the same time, I am not sure allowing such apps is helpful towards solidifying Apple’s image. The company has been specific about the types of apps that it does not allow on iPhone, and Hottest Girls comes very close. I just wish Apple nixed this app before it made it through. Aren’t you tired of these flip-flops?

Your take: should Apple allow porn or other controversial apps on iPhone? How would you go about handling this situation?