App Store Approval Process Improvements
Apple's App Store and its approval process have taken significant heat over the past months from pretty much everyone. This includes myself. I think things are changing for the better, though. Apple seems to have cut the time for app approval and loosened their grip on the store. Although there's still room for improvement, I'm pleased at the strides they're making to improve the process.
Our submissions to the App Store have historically taken between 2-5 weeks. In the last two weeks, several updates to our apps have been approved in 3-7 days. That's huge. I'm not sure if Apple has beefed up staffing or if the App Review team is working overtime before the holidays but in any case, it's a welcome change.In addition to shorter approval times, Apple has also taken a more laid back approach to the use of private APIs. Basically, they're letting developers use UIGetScreenImage() that, as the name implies, allows one to grab an image from the screen resulting in things like rudimentary video playback. They are also allowing updates with private APIs to go through in some cases and asking developers to resolve issues in the next build. This saves a lot of time.
Another once forbidden practice that iss now allowed is the ability to stream video over 3G. I'm not sure if this is a delayed side effect of the FCC inquiry into the behavior of AT&T+Apple+Google, but it's incredibly useful to be able to do this sort of thing. I expect EchoStar to enable support for 3G streaming in their SlingPlayer app in the near future.
I think these are great steps toward a more open App Store and my hope is Apple is working toward an entirely open App Store.
