On Monday, Basecamp launched an email app called Hey. The paid service tries to redefine email by adding features that make it easier to use. (In case you're wondering, the email app costs $99 per year.)
According to a series of tweets posted by David Heinemeier Hansson, Basecamp co-founder and CTO, Apple initially approved version 1.0 of Hey and published it to the App Store. But it was later rejected because the Hey email app doesn't offer an in-app purchase option for users who want to sign up for the $99-per-year subscription service. The company appealed the decision, but was unsuccessful.
Here you'll find the rejection letter Hey received, detailing the exact review guideline along with an explanation of what they need to do to get the app approved. If they don't follow the guidelines, Apple may remove the app.
Apple typically charges a commission of 15% to 30%, depending on the sales model and the length of time the app has been listed in the store. For subscriptions like this, Apple will take 30% of each subscription for the first year and 15% thereafter.
Apple has not commented on this specific incident, but it seems that its guidelines for developers and the publication of applications in the app store are strict.
For example, App Store Review Guideline 3.1.1. This specific guideline states that if an app offers a cross-platform subscription service , it must offer an in- app purchase option for the subscription.
Also, as we informed you in our previous article , Apple is being controlled by the European Union due to complaints from its competitors that the commissions it receives are too high and that it uses unfair competition against various rival companies.
