The rotten Apple iPhone developer program
Whilst Apple‘s products are amongst the best-designed and most stylish in the world, that company’s interaction with its developer community is rather archaic and worthy of being called dictatorial. The process I followed to be registered as an iPhone developer started innocuously enough: log on to the developer website and start entering details. But whilst every other process of purchasing goods on the Internet permits immediate purchase by credit card, the Apple iPhone developer program stops its web workflow and requires a form to be printed out, signed and faxed to developer central. I am generally not interested in faxing anything and I initially attempted to mail a scanned copy of the completed form to Apple. No response. So, I went the way of the 1980′s and reticently faxed them the piece of paper.
A fast turnaround time, to be fair. I had a confirmation of my enrollment within a few hours, but attempting to activate my paid-for membership resulted in another disappointment: a request for identity verification, no less!
Once again, I need to print out a form and complete it. Attach a certified copy of a passport or similar identification document and then fax it off to Apple. It’s as though I’m trying to gain access to CERN‘s LHC complex instead of wanting to potter around developing an iPhone application or trying to see what options there are for iPad development. Requesting identity verification for a developer program is a joke, specifically if my payment has already been completed and accepted. Why not request identity verification together with the payment if that’s so important? The fact that the enrollment procedure doesn’t take place completely electronically is an inconvenience. The fact that Apple requires identity verification for the download and use of an SDK to support their products is an absolute disgrace!
http://www.cracked.com/article_18377_5-reasons-you-should-be-scared-apple.html
Hi, I’m curious how this eventually turned out.
I just ran into this issue the other day, got myself an Ipod Touch 4, have Flash cs5 with it’s Packager for Iphone… And now I have to fax something… And I see from you now I’ll have to fax two things… Arg. So backwards! How did it eventually come out? Are you an apple developer now?
Indeed; I have just gone through the same thing, and demanded a refund from Apple; I imagine it will come through. They’re legally required to refund based on the Australian Trade Practices Act.
I’m in the same boat; I just wanted to experiment with the SDK; I even paid them $110 for the privilege, then they come up with this absurd notary demand.
I don’t deal with time-wasters (and money wasters in this case; solicitors are expensive).
Windows Phone 7 is looking good.
Happens to me, i ´m having the first contact with apple products and let me say, Apple is a fucker, i have insert my information about 7/8 time for different login: developer, music, etc… and fuck… HEven to have a ipad i have to install itunes – i dont want it!!!!!
I was a software engineer at Apple in 1986 and I swear by their products. However, the business side of Apple is atrocious. I just experienced the same thing. You do realize, don’t you… that if you develop an app and manage to get through the incredibly tortured maze of publishing it… and then decide you don’t want to maintain your developer account your app will be deleted from the store. Yes, your app relies on a distribution certificate tied to your IOS account so… that’ll be $99 a year please.
I told them in no polite terms to go fuck themselves and that’s while I’ll always use macs… I’ll never develop for Apple again.