14 DAY TRIAL // Apple has approved an RSS app that blatantly copies every single feature from the original Vienna RSS application, which has always been free of charge.
A few days ago I noticed an app called Sharky RSS on the Mac App Store. Its developer, xin jin, had made it a free download for a brief time, and I’d wanted to share the good news with everyone, but by the time I got to it, the developer had already changed his mind and set the original purchase price back in place.
Then, as I was browsing through the screenshots, I realized it looked exactly like Vienna, my RSS app of choice. What gives?
Apparently, xin jin copied every single line of code from The Vienna Team’s popular (free) RSS app, repackaged it, and put a $4.99 / €4.49 price tag on it. Apple didn’t sense anything fishy, so they approved it.
The Vienna Team doesn’t distribute its app in the Mac App Store, giving developers like xin jin a chance to not only fill the gap, but turn a profit too.
It’s sad to see something like this happen, and while it’s certainly not Apple’s obligation to notice the similarities between two third-party apps, I really hope they take note of it sooner rather than later.