Hey Calendar resubmitted with spiteful Apple history feature inspired by successful Kickst...

AppleInsiderAppleInsider
Posted:
in iOS edited January 8

In order to spite Apple with a simple feature, Hey decided to give away a digital Apple history calendar for free, inspired by the successful Kickstarter campaign for a physical Apple history calendar.

Hey Calendar
Hey Calendar



Apple's history isn't secret or unfindable, nor is the notion of putting it in a calendar. However, David Heinemeier Hansson, aka DHH and co-founder of Basecamp, took the concept from a successful Kickstarter campaign and turned it into a spiteful weapon against App Review.

Hey Calendar was rejected by Apple on January 5 for not functioning without a login. Like with Hey Mail, the company hoped to submit an app and have it treated as a "reader" app like Netflix, which doesn't function without a login.

Apple won't consider either app as a reader app and hasn't disclosed why. Instead, Hey must provide basic functionality to have the app approved.

DHH and his team spent the weekend implementing a new idea for the app as a nod in Apple's direction. They have resubmitted the app with an Apple history calendar that displays if the user hasn't logged in.

The concept on its face is harmless enough. However, DHH went out of his way to point out where the concept's inspiration came from.

This is essentially a digital version of the 2024 Apple History Calendar that raised over $40,000 on Kickstarter. Apple has a rich history that lots of people want to relive, and we're giving them that inside the beautiful HEY Calendar app. For free! https://t.co/gPdfrlj35q

-- DHH (@dhh)



The information is public knowledge, so it seems unnecessary to admit they took the idea from Stephen Hackett's Apple History Calendar Kickstarter, gave it to a team of people, and made it free. Hackett's calendar is a physical one, and Hey's move likely won't impact his ability to sell them, but a .ics file is included with the purchase to incentivize users to own a physical calendar in a digital-first world.

DHH could have created a basic holiday calendar or a history of Basecamp but instead took inspiration from someone else's work. Apple's stance against Hey Calendar and previously Hey Email create unnecessary problems, but Hey's solution may have crossed a line.

Since the Hey Calendar app has basic functionality due to this addition, Apple will likely approve the submission.



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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 8
    rorschachairorschachai Posts: 62member
    I’m convinced some of these companies deliberately get their app rejected to get free press for their launch. Especially since this is exactly the same issue that their other app got rejected for. They know what they’re doing.
    thtwilliamlondonwatto_cobra
  • Reply 2 of 8
    InspiredCodeInspiredCode Posts: 405member
    It is a pretty dumb review denial, but I get how it edges on the productivity app space that Apple wouldn’t want to lose out revenue on. 

    My opinion is Apple should just require the app to be for the developers first party cloud services only and all functionality must match the web app. Maybe unlist them too and require a link to the store from the website. Since these are web-first services, not a big deal to get them from the website where you need to sign up for them anyway. That also sidesteps the whole steering issue Apple has been getting in trouble for. Maybe even put some entitlement level restrictions on these apps to forbid advanced features and make app review easier. Basically, instead of reader apps these are web-equivalent apps.
    edited January 8 watto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 8
    BittySonBittySon Posts: 75member
    Why anyone would install software from a man with the maturity level of tadpole is beyond me.
    auxiomagman1979williamlondonzeus423watto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 8
    mattinozmattinoz Posts: 2,456member
    BittySon said:
    Why anyone would install software from a man with the maturity level of tadpole is beyond me.
    Given the number of successful products from men with the maturity level of a tadpole. Email systems seems one of the low potential harm products 
    williamlondonwatto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 8
    auxioauxio Posts: 2,755member
    mattinoz said:
    BittySon said:
    Why anyone would install software from a man with the maturity level of tadpole is beyond me.
    Given the number of successful products from men with the maturity level of a tadpole. Email systems seems one of the low potential harm products 
    Giving said tadpole access to your calendar and all of your email is low potential harm?
    williamlondonwatto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 8
    magman1979magman1979 Posts: 1,301member
    BittySon said:
    Why anyone would install software from a man with the maturity level of tadpole is beyond me.
    You took the words right out of my mouth!
    williamlondonwatto_cobra
  • Reply 7 of 8
    RespiteRespite Posts: 111member
    Where's the spite?  It's genuine Apple history, and adds some element of functionality, so they've essentially done exactly what Apple asked while giving a bit of an Apple history plug and a plug to Stephen Hackett's calendar with artwork.

    If they were somehow delivering a history of every dumb policy reversal Apple had done over app rejections then maybe that would qualify as spiteful.
    edited January 9 williamlondonwatto_cobra
  • Reply 8 of 8
    RespiteRespite Posts: 111member

    InspiredCode said:
    It is a pretty dumb review denial, but I get how it edges on the productivity app space that Apple wouldn’t want to lose out revenue on. 
    What revenue is Apple deriving from calendaring?
    williamlondonwatto_cobra
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