News
App Store falling victim to name squatters
By Charles Starrett
Contributing Editor
Published: Monday, October 12, 2009
News Categories: Apps + Games
Some iPhone developers are having trouble finding good names for their applications as it seems that some unscrupulous developers are “name squatting” on the App Store. The problem developers, which iPhone developer Atomic Antelope calls “worse than domain name squatters,” are taking advantage of a loophole in Apple’s application submission system that lets developers partially register an app name without needing to actually submit the application. Recombu reports that not only are the names then considered taken, even though no application is submitted, but Apple also fails to disclose details of developers who have submitted a given application name, leaving developers planning on a given name for their app with no way to contact the squatter or other developer who has previously submitted the name.
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1
Why doesn’t Apple just put a 30-day time limit on applications to submit the app? If no app by then, the name is released (no renewal of an extension allowed). Wouldn’t something like this fix the problem?
Posted by Monty Lee on October 12, 2009 at 6:59 AM (PST)
2
This is SO not an issue. Why are bloggers all repeating this tripe? Some developer tried to publish an app with a generic name. With 85,000 apps in the store, it’s not surprising that the name was taken. So this guy assumes it’s the work of nefarious “name squatters” and then makes matters worse by running out and squatting on names.
Please read the comments at the end of the original article. They very clearly explain why the article is stupid.
Finally, there IS protection against this kind of thing. It’s all detailed at uspto.gov. The US Patent and Trademark Office gives you a monopoly on a name, applied in a particular class of uses. If somebody treads on your trademark, complain to Apple, and they will take care of it. What the hell is the news here?
Move along, ya lookie-loos, there’s nothing to see here.
Posted by Carmen on October 12, 2009 at 8:13 PM (PST)