Apple has in recent days dramatically accelerated the approval time for iPhone apps, developer anecdotes suggest. iTunes Connect, the service through which apps are submitted, was temporarily disabled between December 23rd and the 28th. In the time following its return however, some developers are reporting that Apple has approved titles in as little as two to three days.

During 2009 the App Store became infamous for extended approval times, typically lasting a few weeks, but sometimes as long as months if complications arose. Apple may be relaxing many of its policies, leaving less to examine, and fewer reasons to immediately block an app from sale. Developers also have access to clearer submission guidelines than they once did, and some aspects of the approval process have been automated.

A glut of apps is regularly managed by Apple, which now hosts over 100,000 active titles in the App Store. The company recently surpassed the 3 billion downloads mark.