iPhone -- rejected for keyword

Question

I make an app which is a clone of a well-known game. I had the name of that game as a keyword in the first two versions of my app. Many competing apps also use the keyword.

I just updated my app. Apple said I couldn't have that keyword and took it out.

Meanwhile, a search on the name of the game brings up over 40 apps, most of them third-party apps which are not licensed. Now that the keyword has been removed, my app does not come up in the search, even though it is highly popular.

Is my best bet to:

a) Point out the discrepancy to Apple.
b) Try again in the next update
c) Give up.
d) Something else?

Answer 1

If I were you, I'd go with "a) Point out the discrepancy to Apple" and probably ask them why they took it out to begin with.

If I were me, I would just ditch Apple and move on (Android, maybe even Windows Phone 7).

Answer 2

Apple's official policy changed a while back to disallow the use of competitor's products in your keywords. Have any of the other apps that use this keyword been updated recently? It's entirely possible that their use of the keyword dates to before this policy change.

Answer 3

(a) and (c).

Using unlicensed trademarks as keywords seems to be a violation of the App store guidelines (but IANAL). If you point out those other apps to the review board, it probably won't help you directly, but there is some small chance that sometime if the far future when these other developers try to update their apps, the keyword will be disallowed for them also. But don't count on it.

Your being allowed that keyword originally is part of the luck of the game. Don't assume that a some amount of luck won't be involved with Android and Windows Phone (et.al.) App store revenues as well.