Filed under: Games, News, Apple, iPhone
Apple nixes baby-shaking iPhone app
Apple's policy of approving every iPhone app that goes into its store has led to delays for developers and plenty of controversy whenever a questionable app makes it through the process. The latest stir was over a "baby-shaker" app that was available in the store from Monday to Wednesday of this week before Apple pulled it, according to The Examiner. Apparently, the object of the game was to see how long you could listen to the crying of a cute illustrated baby before you would shake your iPhone to make it stop. People were understandably upset. The app got quite a bit of news coverage before Apple was finally able to pull it, and there's been no comment so far about how it got into the app store in the first place. It's really hard for me to see the pro-baby-shaker side of this story. Even if you feel like it's just a game and people should lighten up -- after all, so many video games involve killing -- it still doesn't make sense for Apple to have let it pass, considering the much less offensive apps that have been removed from the store.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Taylor. Yes, Taylor. said 9:40PM on 4-23-2009
I disagree with this mentality.
Video games, however stupid, are still just video games. If someone wants to make a baby shaking app, and someone wants to download it, that should be up to those two people. If someone doesn't want the app, they don't have to download it. Why should we deny someone an app that would amuse them just because someone else doesn't like it? Especially with video games so often involving killing hordes of people?
Apple does this to prevent their image from being tarnished, but how far should that go? Why don't they install netnanny on every mac so people can't view offensive material?
And who really thinks worse of apple because of an app? Well, obviously apple had to approve the app initially, so it's very existence on the store would seem like they endorse it, but if they stopped pulling all these "gray area" apps, people would stop expecting it, and get upset with the publisher instead, which is the right place to go if something upsets you.
I don't want someone else deciding what content is good for me, no matter what it is. I am an adult and i should be allowed to make my own decisions.
For the kids out there, maybe apple can have a "kid safe" designation for apps that then have more stringent approval, and a lock on the store that can be set by parents.
Just don't censor my content.
-Taylor
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mvp said 9:20PM on 4-23-2009
amen
gt-racer said 9:29PM on 4-23-2009
Absolutely Spot on.
The false outrage bothers me on a level I cannot begin to explain. I hate when people don't like something and are pompous enough to believe that it shouldn't exist. These are the same people going after video games, and shocker, they don't play them they hear others talking about them and get on their high self righteous horses and spout garbage of which they are ignorant of.
It is sickening that people so desperately want to validate their own
existences by triyng to force others to live like them.
Kudos to people like you and I who don't rely on others to be responsible for us.
BTW: To even buy an app in the appstore, you need an iTunes account. To have said account you need a credit card. New rule - If you have a credit card you can make your own moral decisions, and you are not a kid. So let's stop the protect the kids BS.
r3loaded said 10:12PM on 4-23-2009
@gt-racer
The sad truth: Many people with credit cards seem unable to make level-headed decisions, and often act like kids. It's partly why we're in a credit liquidity mess at the moment...
Xell said 5:06AM on 4-24-2009
I agree with your view entirely.
My only concern is that people are choosing to download such obvious rubbish:
"the object of the game was to see how long you could listen to the crying of a cute illustrated baby before you would shake your iPhone to make it stop"
How is that in any way fun? It sounds so god damn boring!
Evenio said 8:12PM on 4-23-2009
If there was a doubt in anyone's mind that the App Store vetting process is irreparably broken and needs to be rebuilt from square one, the fact that Baby Shaker made it into the store at all should remove that doubt entirely.
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bernie16wb said 8:46PM on 4-23-2009
I don't see the problem with this App to be honest. It deals with a touchy subject (shaking babies/bad parenting) but it wasn't particularly gory nor does it say "Go try this at home!"
Censorship isn't right just because it hurts some people's feelings.
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clawson.jack said 7:40AM on 4-24-2009
I totally agree with you. I luv my iphone. got a good deal from amazon through an alert off http://www.trackle.com
Jay Hathaway said 9:47PM on 4-23-2009
I'm not as concerned with Apple violating some kind of perceived moral boundary the complainers have as with Apple inconsistently applying its own stated policies. A corporation can make its own rules about its own app store, but when it doesn't follow them, it hurts developers and customers.
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NyaR said 10:43PM on 4-23-2009
OH MY GOD SHAKING AN IPHONE WITH A DRAWING OF A BABY! WONT SOMEBODY THINK OF THE CHILDREN?
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Ryan said 12:43AM on 4-24-2009
My local news station just did a story on this. Very weird app.
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radman1331 said 3:54AM on 4-24-2009
Apparently the message the iphone app sent was that "shaking a baby screws it up"
We cam't have that message getting out there.
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bmc13 said 11:19AM on 4-24-2009
just resubmit the app as the "baby rocking" app and make it so if you shake it too hard you lose! :)
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J0 said 12:32PM on 4-24-2009
Ever lost a baby to it? How about pulling it out and throwing it agains't the wall? I should be stunned by the lack of empathy and concern from people about this, but... I'm not. There are so many people who would see this and think " can't be that bad if they make a game out of it" Maybe they could add a molester to the game because, you know, if you don't like, you don't have to watch.
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Swendor said 12:43PM on 4-24-2009
I'm sorry but I just don't see this as a censorship issue. Apple is a corporation which has a right to carry the apps it wants to. Is there another outlet where the developer can offer this app? No one's saying he can't develop said application. I see this being very similar to Walmart saying it wouldn't carry games rated MA. Rockstar still made GTA but it found other stores to carry it. Is the App Store the ONLY way to get apps for the iPhone?
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who_cares said 3:00PM on 4-24-2009
As far as I know, yes, the app store is the only way to get apps onto the iPhone. Well, without jailbreaking it anyway.
Anonymous said 4:32PM on 4-24-2009
Whoever thinks this app is ok is seriously delusional. Being the mother of a shaken baby (by his father) is hard enough to deal with let alone horrible people out there making games out of the tragic situation. If you don't see the wrong in this then you need some serious therapy and a serious reality check. It is not a game and especially not a game to the child who survives and has the live this reality.
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radman1331 said 12:50AM on 4-25-2009
You must go crazy over Electronic Arts then. Did you know Call of Duty monetizes the pain and suffering caused in WW2?
D. Poorman said 9:42AM on 4-28-2009
I bet Michael J. Fox would be REALLY good at this game.
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Art Kidwell said 1:59AM on 5-09-2009
I have an idea. Make a Daddy shaker APP for frustrayed 16 year olds (Mommy shaker would be just wrong)
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