Designer of Facebook App for iPhone Quits

In 2007, Apple Computers created history with the launch of the most successful smartphone till date - the Apple iPhone. Entering the mobile phone market for the first time, Apple used ground breaking and revolutionary technology, and design to come up with a phone that has managed to hold on to the top spot in smartphones, regardless of the fierce competition. With a cosmetic change and numerous hardware changes, the iPhone has sold so fast and in such great numbers, that it has created a whole new niche for mobile phone software developers.

One of the huge plus points of the phone is that it has a dedicated 'store' from where one can buy applications, games, etc, for the phone. Called the 'App Store', this is a very good concept from Apple, wherein a user can search for an application and directly download it to the phone. With tens of thousands applications available, both free and paid, this is one of the key factors that drives up the sales of the phone.

However, from the word go, developers have been crying that Apple is very strict in approving applications for the App Store. With stringent policies and regulations that developers have to keep in mind, it becomes a difficult process indeed. Hugely talented developers have seen their applications denied or rejected simply because Apple thought it didn't need those features in their phones. It has reached a point where developers have simply quit designing applications for the iPhone. Sad but true.

The latest of these developers who have quit is none other than Joe Hewitt, the man who designed the Facebook application for the iPhone. Bothered and hindered by Apple's lack of cooperation and stringent policies, this genius developer finally quit developing for Apple. "My decision to stop iPhone development has had everything to do with Apple’s policies." However, in a tweet he said, "For every dev[eloper] that leaves iPhone in frustration, 1000 new ones join up. [The] iPhone is an unstoppable train regardless of how much we complain."

The application developed by Hewitt is hugely popular, and Facebook, who does not seem to have any problems with App Store policies, says that Hewitt's decision to leave will not hamper the development of the application. The VP of Communications for Facebook, Elliot Schrage, commented on a post, saying, "Though Joe himself will be moving to new projects, Facebook has a great team of engineers taking over iPhone related development."

Hewitt has been largely unsatisfied with many things about the iPhone App Store. Developers who submit applications for the App Store need to wait 14 days before they know if their app has been approved or rejected. While this waiting time might be justifiable, Hewitt does not like the reason of this waiting period, describing it as 'guilty until proven innocent'. Also, he was not happy with the Apple reviewers [Apple employs about 40 full time reviewers] saying that they could in no way provide a meaningful review of any product. He was of the opinion that reviews should be conducted by developers, who can provide the best reviews of a product. Hewitt slammed the reviewers saying that they were not bothered about the product, they were only looking for violations in the terms of service.

Hewitt goes as far as to tell Apple to get rid of the approval process for apps submitted to the App Store, something unlikely to happen, keeping in mind the protection of the consumers. However, with the Android Market, which has no approval process, doing reasonably well, this is something that Apple should be looking at. Though smaller than the App Store, the Android market has banned only about 1% of its apps, with users themselves reviewing and pointing out bad apps.

On his site, Joe clarifies further, saying, "I have only one major complaint with the App Store, and I can state it quite simply: the review process needs to be eliminated completely". He also clarifies his gripe with the review process, saying, "The fact is this: Apple does not have the means to perform thorough quality assurance on any app. This is up to the developer. We have our own product managers and quality assurance testers, and we are liable to our users and the courts if we do anything evil or stupid. Apple may catch a few shallow bugs in the review process, but let's face it, the real things they are looking for are not bugs, but violations of the terms of service. This is all about lawyers, not quality, and it shows that the model of Apple's justice system is guilty until proven innocent. They don't trust us, and I resent that, because the vast majority of us are trustworthy."

In spite of all this, Hewitt realizes the potential and the quality of Apple, and has no problems with their products. He even acknowledges that they are more concerned with how the consumers feel, and how are they looking to keep the consumers happy. He says, "I will not stop developing for Apple's platforms or using Apple's products as long as they continue to produce the best stuff on the market. I never forget how deeply Apple cares about making their users happy, and that counts more than how they treat their developers."

However, with the App Store being one of the main advantages of the iPhone, points like these are bound to resurface, and in the view of all the competition [Google's Android Market, Nokia's OVI Store], Apple should be looking at its App Store policies in detail. With the App Store growing from strength to strength, the last thing one wants is extremely talented developers like Hewitt quitting.