Could solve public criticisms

Apple is about to add an "Explicit" category of software to the App Store, says one developer. The option is said to have recently appeared in iTunes Connect, the system developers use to track and submit iPhone and iPod apps. Particularly as no apps on sale are known to use the label, Apple could be arranging a system which makes "adult" apps once again available, but in some way harder to access for minors.

A major app purge has been underway since last week, removing work that Apple has deemed to be "overtly sexual." Marketing executive Phil Schiller has defended the move, citing complaints from offended women and/or parents. It could seriously damage the livelihood of some developers however, and critics have charged Apple with hypocrisy, as it continues to sell Playboy and Sports Illustrated Swimsuit apps on the grounds of their makers' reputations and acceptance. Most of the banned apps are from smaller, less wealthy and less influential companies.

by MacNN Staff