And this time it’s an eBook with nothing but words!
E-Book Banned from App Store for Obscene Content
David Carnoy’s book, entitled Knife Music, was rejected twice by Apple. Yesterday, Apple deemed some of its content objectionable, saying the book does not follow the company’s guidelines in its software-development kit, according to Carnoy (who is also the writer behind CNET’s Fully Equipped electronics column).
One line in particular, where a teenage girl uses expletives during a romantic encounter, is at the core of Apple’s objections.
“The app was resubmitted last week, and the only reason cited for the rejection was because of the obscene content,” Carnoy said.
Emphasis added by me.
Why is he surprised?
“And furthermore, there’s ‘explicit’ content all over iTunes, with lots of rap music (they have the ‘explicit’ bug on those items). And obviously, Apple does serve up some R-rated movies,” Carnoy added. “Beyond that, Apple sells audiobooks through iTunes that feature profanities. It has plenty of best sellers that are in the same genre as my book (Michael Connelly’s Brass Verdict, for instance). So, obviously, the whole thing is hypocritical and unfair. My book is R-rated at best. It’s not porn.”
Welcome to the Apple App Store of Hypocrisy, Carnoy!
Previously here:
Direct Publishing Via POD: A Primer (David Carnoy article)
WHY Freedom Of Speech MATTERS, Dammit! Part Three
Sony eBook Store: Publishers Portal
2010: Back In Your Box, Bitch
WHY Freedom Of Speech MATTERS, Dammit! Part Two
WHY Freedom Of Speech MATTERS, Dammit!
Takiji Kobayashi: Writer’s Revenge
Murderdrome: Eleven Years Old!
Print: Dying. And The Net: No Future?
Apple And A Tale Of Two Bannings
Apple Forfeits eBooks By Banning A Comic Book!
The eBook Test 
Yet another nail in the coffin for those proclaiming the iPhone as a eReader. Who wants to chance buying a book, only to have it disappear (along with your money), possibly halfway thru reading it?
Sure, Amazon might have the expertise to do this, but has never shown any inclination to do so (and all your non-DRM content is safely read there or on any PC).