If problems are found, the company will notify developers who've left these "abandoned" apps to collect dust in the App Store that changes must be made within 30 days. Failing that, those apps will be removed completely. However, apps that instantly crash when opened will be removed immediately once they go through Apple's evaluation process. "Quality is extremely important to us," the email reads. "We know that many of you work hard to build innovative apps and update your apps on the App Store with new content and features." If you've already downloaded an app that gets booted from the App Store, you'll still be able to keep using it.
The email warns that such lengthy names "are not fully displayed on the App Store and provide no user value." This change is particularly interesting ahead of the launch of iOS 10, which introduces Search Ads that let developers pay to be placed at the top of search results for terms relevant to their app.
Both of these changes take effect beginning September 7th — the same day Apple is expected to announce a new iPhone, second-generation Apple Watch, and the public release date of iOS 10. Keep in mind that we're talking about software that hasn't been updated in years, so it's unlikely that this process will impact any of the everyday apps on your iPhone's home screen. Apple says that at present, the App Store contains over 2 million apps. So it's about time to start getting rid of the junk (hi, fart apps) and long forgotten selections from the App Store's early days to make room for the next era of mobile apps.
Writer - Liam McClelland | @Liamicy