The iPhone App "A Blackjack Card Counter" is one of the most controversial Apps in the iPhone Appstore.  In February 2009 a story about how the Nevada gaming board sent out a memo warning about the app, was picked up by Reuters and sent to media outlets all around the world.  This publicity send sales of the app through the roof for a brief period of time.

As the developer of the app I was concerned of course about the implications of having a controversial app.  I sought some legal advice and it was deemed that making the app or buying the app was not illegal.  But that using it in a casino almost certainly was.  I made it clear in the app and in my promotional material that people should not use the app in a casino.  At the time Apple made no comments on the app or it's legality or otherwise.

Not long after the media frenzy I submitted an update to the Appstore which basically required people to confirm that they would not use it in a casino.  However Apple refused to allow anymore updates to the app, but paradoxically allowed it to stay in the store.  I was just happy that it wasn't removed completely so I accepted that no more updates could be made, even though it didn't really make sense to me.

Then out of the blue on the 5th of October 2009 I received a phone call from Apple informing me that the more controversial element, the stealth mode, had to be removed.  I quickly made the update, but in the mean time the app was removed from the store.  Presumably this was a change in Apple policy.  My initial update removed the stealth mode, I was then informed that I also had to remove the vibrate feature.  I again quickly made an update.

There were some issues with the review process and it has now been almost a full 2 months but "A Blackjack Card Counter" is finally back in the store.  The appstore is still a relatively new phenomenon so I understand that Apple's policy needs to be updated and refined from time to time.  I just hope that it now remains in the store and available for years to come.

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