Apple’s back tracks after the popular Mac app “Amphetamine” threatened with removal of the brand

The popular Mac app “Amphetamine” will remain in the Mac App Store after it was reportedly threatened with removal of its name and brand, according to Apple breached the App Store guidelines.

Amphetamine is a free application for Mac that helps users keep the machine awake for a certain amount of time. Launched in 2014, the application has been downloaded more than 432,000 times and is highly rated in the “Mac App Store”. The application has also been submitted by MacRumors in the past. After six years in the “Mac App Store,” Apple suddenly decided that Amphetamine had violated “Apple Store” guidelines.

Amphetamine developer William Gustafson posted an extensive report on GitHub a few days ago explaining that an Apple representative contacted him, saying that amphetamine would be removed from the “Mac App Store” on the 12th. January 2021, if several changes occurred. has not been done in the application. The representative indicated that Amphetamine did not meet the following requirement:

Applications that encourage the use of tobacco and vape products, illegal drugs or excessive amounts of alcohol are not allowed in the ‌App Store‌. Applications that encourage minors to consume any of these substances will be rejected. The sale of marijuana, tobacco or controlled substances is not permitted (except at authorized pharmacies).

According to reports, the Apple representative said that “your app seems to promote inappropriate use of controlled substances. Specifically, the name and icon of the app include references to controlled substances, pills.”

Gustafson argued that amphetamine does not promote the use of illegal drugs because amphetamine is a prescription drug in the United States. He also noted that “objectively speaking,” amphetamine does not encourage taking amphetamine “irresponsibly, illegally or recreationally.”

Just as amphetamine (the organic compound) can be used legally to keep humans awake and alert, amphetamine (the application) can be used legally to keep the Mac awake.

Gustafson filed an appeal and filed a Change.org petition that has garnered more than 500 signatures in an effort to combat the claim against the application. And recently, he announced on Twitter that he had finished a phone call with the App Review Board and that Amphetamine would remain in the “Mac App Store.”

Apple has directly promoted amphetamine in a history of the Mac App Store and has accumulated more than 1,400 comments in the “Mac App Store”, so it seems strange that the application was only asked to change brand now. In addition, Gustafson said he had had countless interactions with Apple and its amphetamine app review team, but the issue was never raised before, so it’s unclear what triggered the problem. .