Developers fuming over Apple's heavy hand.
Apple is drawing the ire of developers for its handling of the iPhone App Store.
The company is drawing criticism from the developers for rejecting App submissions which have been classified as "duplicating the functionality" of current Apple products.
The latest incident came from the company's dealings with Nullriver Software, a small firm whose lineup includes applications that allow Mac users to connect their computers to various game consoles and entertainment systems.
The company had developed a piece of software called NetShare which performed a "tethering" process in which the iPhone's wireless internet connection could be shared with another system.
NullRiver claimed on its site that after initially removing the application from the AppStire on August 1st, Apple declared on September 13th that it would permanently bar NetShare from the store.
"We are seeing a lot of similar reports from various developers who's applications were abruptly removed and banned from the AppStore without any violations of the terms of service," the company said.
"This is all unfortunate news for the iPhone platform end-users."
NullRiver is not the only company being left out in the cold by the AppStore. The company has previously refused to carry novelty applications such as the $999 'I am rich' app or the gas-passing simulator 'Pull My Finger.'
Now, however, developers are claiming that their applications are being taken down simply for behaving too much like Apple products.
Among the other applications which have been removed from the store is Podcaster, a tool which allows the iPhone to automatically download podcasts.
In a blog posting, Podcaster's developer said that Apple had pulled the application for performing the same function as iTunes.
"Although my app does allow you to listen to podcasts (like iTunes), it also allows you to download them directly to device and that is something Apple does not offer," the developer noted.
"I followed all the guidelines and made sure everything is in the correct place. Yet Apple denies me because I allow users to download podcasts just like iTunes."
Apple has long been hesitant about opening up the iPhone to developers. The handset was restricted to browser-pased applications for much of its early life before plans for a software development kit were finally revealed.
Shortly after Apple opened the App store and released an SDK for developers, the company admitted to placing controls on the phone which would allow the company to remotely remove software deemed harmful.
That list was not populated with any names yet, howver, and the company has vowed that it is strictly a security precaution to prevent data theft.