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German publisher tweaks Apple over ‘no nipple policy’

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 · 3:53 pm · 34 Comments

“The International Federation of the Periodical Press (FIPP) is considering making a complaint to Apple over the computer firm’s request that German publisher Springer censor the naked girls on one of its iPhone apps,” Mercedes Bunz reports for The Guardian.

“Springer-owned tabloid Bild’s ‘Shake the Bild Girl’ app allows iPhone users to undress a model. Each time the user shakes the phone, the girl strips an item of her clothing. While Bild features naked women daily in its pages, Apple ruled that the girls in its iPhone app should wear bikinis,” Bunz reports. “The Association of German Magazine Publishers asked FIPP last week to approach Apple over the issue. FIPP is debating the issue, but has no further comment at the moment.”

Bunz reports, “Apple asks publishers of general interest apps to respect its US ‘no nipples’ policy. In November, German weekly Stern’s app was dropped from the App Store due to an erotic photo gallery. When Apple approached Bild in January, the publisher censored the PDF version of the paper programmed for the iPhone.”

Full article here.

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Comment Feed

34 Comments

1 2 Next »

KeepHopeAlive

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 4:55 pm · Reply

Great headline!
HughB

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 4:58 pm · Reply

Let the titty fans go with Android.
TowerTone

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 4:59 pm · Reply

MDN

Please feel free to keep us abreast of this sticky situation and the shaky state of their suit….
amex

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 5:00 pm · Reply

The puritans are winning. Guns don’t kill people…
lisa

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 5:04 pm · Reply

Ouch – reading with hands over breasts, protecting n++++^^.
Silly americans

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 5:25 pm · Reply

Where else but in the US is it OK to show a decapated body, but not ok to show a woman’s nipple?

US= Make war, not love
world = Make love, not war
Macduff

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 5:31 pm · Reply

Considering the mass influx of immigrants from all corners of the world into the USA I’m surprised that the founding fathers puritanical attitude still holds sway over such matters and considering that due to this attitude they must have procreated in the dark whilst still keeping their clothes on I’m further surprised that there’s still any of em left. No wonder we kicked them out of the uk.
Zach

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 5:33 pm · Reply

@sillyamericans
Europeans are more sensitive to violence because they experienced the tradgedy of two world wars, while Americans are more sensitive to nudity as they experienced the tragedy of the national lampoon franchise. Seriously though, it’s apple’s store and apple’s call. Don’t like it? Use a POS android phone, or just use safari.
Big Als MBP

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 5:36 pm · Reply

No nipples!

How will mothers feed their newborn children?

Speaking of bodily functions, Fart Apps but no nipples? Oh the Humanity!
KenC

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 5:40 pm · Reply

The reporter’s name is Mercedes Bunz? Surely, not.
conschmillo

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 5:48 pm · Reply

I like nipples
Hotinplaya

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 5:54 pm · Reply

I think Apples policy is silly, use parental controls!
Macintosh

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 6:00 pm · Reply

“Mercedes Bunz”?? Haha.
MDmac

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 6:03 pm · Reply

“I think Apples policy is silly, use parental controls!”

It doesn’t stop going to a friend’s home and installing it on from another computer unless it is also locked down.
MacDust

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 6:04 pm · Reply

Wait, I’m reading the article and it says, “Springer is Apple’s second biggest client worldwide after Google.” Am I reading that correctly, this company called Springer is a bigger client than MS, Adobe, Yahoo to Apple???
silverhawk

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 6:59 pm · Reply

Let FIPP start their own version of iTunes.
Rot'nApple

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 7:01 pm · Reply

Now if Apple could only get rid of the boobs in Washington.
T

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 7:43 pm · Reply

@MDmac:
yes, and if they do, they will be eternally damaged by seeing…. nipples! You know, the things they were fed through for the first two years of their lives. Get a life, please. Nothing wrong with nudity.
At least these damaged children of yours will still have the right to legally build an arsenal of handguns.
Ubermac

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 7:49 pm · Reply

They should introduce the mandatory burka for al women in America.
NCIceman

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 7:50 pm · Reply

Funny the different standards, we minimally censor violence but freak out at a boob on tv…or on a cell phone, apparently.

Personally I don’t want any of it censored…create a separate app store for it if you have to.
Spark

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 7:54 pm · Reply

@lisa
What did you do when you typed your comment???

Seriously, Apple is going to have get out of the censorship business. I respect their position, but ultimately it is doomed to failure. The iPad needs to be a conduit for a wide range of publications/Applications. You need a credit card to get an iTunes account, so account holder are all over 18 years of age. That and parental controls should be the end of Apple’s involvement in the content we choose to consume on their products. Either that or they need to allow publishers to provide direct delivery of content to our devices, bypassing the iTunes Store.
Puritanical Rubbish

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 7:54 pm · Reply

“T” is right. I’m an American, AND a business owner — and this is embarrassing. Not a big App Store user, but are there any breastfeeding apps currently? If so, will Apple also try and censor those?

This is ridiculous. Americans — more frightened of their children (or themselves) seeing a <GASP!> nipple than seeing a bloody corpse or a gun fight or even scenes depicting torture on 9pm television. It truly boggles the mind. And if you’ve never traveled or never spent any significant time in other countries, you really can’t understand how silly we seem, at least in this area.

Think about it: It’s okay to see . . . the OUTSIDE of the female breast, the INSIDE of the breast (cleavage is somehow okay), the TOP of the breasts, and even the UNDERSIDE of the breasts (poking out from ill-fitting bikini tops), but heaven forbid you allow your child to see even ONE SQUARE MICRON of that slightly darker tissue known as the AREOLA (!) and . . . YOU . . . WILL . . . BE . . . PUNISHED!!! Child abuser!!!

Seriously, what the heck’s wrong with ratings on these apps anyway?
Sol

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 8:40 pm · Reply

What is the point of having the ‘Restrictions’ options in the iPhone OS if applications that are intended for adults are banned from iTunes? Also, why is Apple censoring anything sexual but not anything violent? They seem to be basing their censorship decisions on the assumption that sex is a taboo while violence is entertainment.
ChrissyOne

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 8:43 pm · Reply

@ Rot’nApple
“Now if Apple could only get rid of the boobs in Washington.”

ChrissyOne fully supports boobs in Washington. Indeed, she would even call for MORE boobs.
Ben Dover

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 8:57 pm · Reply

Bounce the boobs!