Your release date is either the date on which the app is approved, or the date that you've specified, whichever is earlier. The best practice is to make sure that your release date is always the approval date, so that you maximize your visibility on the most recent releases list.
I have a question regarding this.
We submitted our first app on March 12 with a release date of March 12 (It might have been March 11 with release date of March 12 -- cannot remember).
It was approved and appeared in the app store on March 20. Of course it was buried -- I wasn't aware of this earlier date tidbit.
We added some functionality and resubmitted. My husband is driving the development at this stage -- I am providing ideas & mock-up screens & graphics. (HAD been -- he got a new job and I'm about to go hands' on with him guiding me! yikes.) So anyway, my husband says there's no where to add a new release date, or date of any sort, on the resubmit. Nothing he saw anyway. So he resubmits a week or so ago and it gets re-approved on April 18th, but it still appears in its "March 12" slot according to release date.
HOW do we get it to appear by approval date now?
Do you submit with a release date of Dec 31, 2035 in order to have this not be an issue?
I know that someone out there is doing it somehow differently because I frequently see apps appear in the list tops on the release date that are obvious re-releases.
Submitted version 2.0 of Binary Game late on Sunday (8 days ago)..
Today I got:
Your application Binary Game is requiring unexpected additional time for review. We apologize for the delay, and will update you with further status as soon as we are able.
Awesome! No real new functionality introduced that should break anything... added a new mode, did some cosmetic changes and some other minor things..
Is it worth contacting them (via email or Phone)? Do they respond?
I think the answer is YES!
While we were being repeatedly rejected and stalled (unexpected additional time...), we continued to send emails after each iteration, with no reply. So, we were ABSOLUTELY FLOORED when we did eventually establish contact with a human. We exchanged a few emails, and then we were rejected again.
I advise you to email them; the worst thing that can happen is that they don't respond, which is essentially the same thing that will happen if you don't send an email. Of course, that's only true if you remember to remain professional. I don't believe rants really help, so I try to be courteous, upbeat and positive instead.
You can read more about our experience in this blog post.
Submitted version 2.0 of Binary Game late on Sunday (8 days ago)..
Today I got:
Your application Binary Game is requiring unexpected additional time for review. We apologize for the delay, and will update you with further status as soon as we are able.
Awesome! No real new functionality introduced that should break anything... added a new mode, did some cosmetic changes and some other minor things..
Is it worth contacting them (via email or Phone)? Do they respond?
I got approved a few hours after getting that email anyway..
But not I got fucked out of the Newest Puzzle Games.. Someone released about 20 individual "SlidePuzzle" games, which pushed me to about the 3rd page, just a few hrs after my release. how lame!
Is it worth contacting them (via email or Phone)? Do they respond?
They have never replied to any of my emails. However, after each email, my requests get done. Perhaps by coincidence, but it can only help, in my opinion.
I hope they are back on a 7-day schedule. I'll know in 2 days!
I'm surprised that nobody has started a mega thread on this forum to document all the various reasons why Apple may reject your app. A couple of things come to mind, e.g. no direct poop references, no negative references to any actual person, no prostitution references, warning message needed for apps that need internet connectivity, no references to features that haven't been implemented, no excessive/continuous use of vibrate, no excessive use of bandwidth, no unauthorized usage of trademarked terms or images.
My impression is that the process is pretty straightforward -- the reviewers are basically checking your app against a list of no-nos. The challenge for us devs of course is that nobody knows for sure what's on that list.
I think the problem is the rules are always changing... in fact, the very first one you mention (no direct poop references) is now out the window... just saw a kids game yesterday that references poop several times in the application description, and the screenshots have it was well. It was written by "a 12 Year Old" as noted several times in the name and description, so not sure if that gets a free pass on the poop reference, but it is there.
Also the warning message for apps needing internet connectivity does not seem to be required... I have downloaded several apps that have internet connectivity that do not have any warnings.
And "no excessive / continuous use of vibrate" is clearly not enforced as there is more than one app that all it does is vibrate.
So clearly, it is not as straightforward as it could be as there are exceptions to every rule it seems.
True, though having a list will help you anticipate potential problems. I personally would find such a list useful.
Re: poop - which app is this? I'm intrigued. The exact guidance we got from Apple (don't ask why ) is: "An app should not contain any feces in any shape or form."
Re: internet connectivity - I meant to say, if your app needs to connect to the internet to work, you must present a warning message if the user is not connected to the internet.
Also the warning message for apps needing internet connectivity does not seem to be required... I have downloaded several apps that have internet connectivity that do not have any warnings.
This appears to be selectively enforced.
Version 1.0 and version 1.1 of one of my applications did NOT provide any warnings if there was no internet connection.... But version 1.2 was rejected, citing this reason. I guess it just depends on who looks at it.
@ziconic - sent you a private message with the app name and link. Not intending to advertise it... just pointing out that rules are not enforced the same across the board.
True, though having a list will help you anticipate potential problems. I personally would find such a list useful.
Re: poop - which app is this? I'm intrigued. The exact guidance we got from Apple (don't ask why ) is: "An app should not contain any feces in any shape or form."
Re: internet connectivity - I meant to say, if your app needs to connect to the internet to work, you must present a warning message if the user is not connected to the internet.
The poop app is called "MooCowFurry" but since it was developed by a "12 year old" it must have an exemption of some sort... I have it on my phone because I got a free code and it's good for a 12 year old designer (although I personally think that the app that I'm building is MUCH better and I'm only 14... oh well)
Submitted my app on Saturday. I am kind of concerned because it's Wednesday and I haven't seen any new users come through on my Pinch Analytics. Last time I submitted, they looked at it the very next day (still took a week to approve though). Anyone else experienced this? Know when they usually look at it?
@rpstro02: I would hardly be concerned over a three day wait without them looking at it. We submitted our update last Thursday for iScore Baseball, and it has not been looked at yet. It looks like the average is now in the 7-10 day range for approvals. Our previous update was looked at on the 6th day, and approved on the 7th. I would not be surprised if it took longer this time.
You just need to put analytics code in your software to know when Apple looks at it. You can either write your own, or use existing software such as Pinch Media or Flurry.
Here is our timeline:
1. Submitted the binaries on April 12.
2. Rejected the binaries ourselves on April 14 afternoon.
3. Resubmitted the binaries on April 14 night.
4. Application is approved on April 21 evening.
Submitted: April 17th 1am Approved: Sometime before April 23rd 10pm.
Which just scrapes in for 6 days! Well done Apple!
I didn't get an email or anything I just checked iTunesconnect .. for all I know it's been approved all day. Appears in search and everything.
While I'm here I'd just like to thank the board for their help. Im a total newbie and it took me 2 months to get my head around the basics required for my "Note Trainer" application. I'm really happy with the result. If you are a muso who reads music, or know a child who would enjoy a note training game please check it out and use these promo codes :
My update was approved hours ago today - total wait time is 7 days. Looks like the wait is coming back down?
BUT -- the update went out without any notification email this time!! This is the first time it's happened to me and I'm pretty pissed because I wanted to tweak some stuff on the server end before the update went out. Grrr.
My update was approved hours ago today - total wait time is 7 days. Looks like the wait is coming back down?
BUT -- the update went out without any notification email this time!! This is the first time it's happened to me and I'm pretty pissed because I wanted to tweak some stuff on the server end before the update went out. Grrr.
Same here. Took 7 days, approved for sales, but no email, and it is not on the list of new apps. I can find it by doing search, however, and the new version shows up.
Linear Mode
