Damus decentralised social network app to be removed from the App Store

Apple is set to remove the Damus app from the App Store for failing to meet platform requirements.

Looks like we are getting removed from the appstore even after updating our app to make it clear that no digital content is getting unlocked when users are tipped. Users are only ever tipped after posts are made, the idea that content is being sold is nonsense. We will be filing… pic.twitter.com/Su945kE37v

— Damus⚡️ (@damusapp) June 26, 2023

It looks like we are being removed from the store even after updating our app, to make clear that digital content is not unlocked when users are tipped.

The company is preparing to file an appeal over what it calls the misapplication of the platform’s technical guidelines.

In mid-June, Apple warned Damus of removing the app due to the content-monetization feature. The so-called zaps help users earn satoshis for views of posts. The initiative is implemented via the Bitcoin micropayment network Lightning Network.

Prominent figures in the crypto community, including Twitter’s former CEO and Block head Jack Dorsey, came to the project’s defence.

Removed from the App Store for enabling tipping to everyone in the world without the need for a bank, payment card, or government permission.https://t.co/kfeQNfal8Q

— jack (@jack) June 27, 2023

Removed from App Store for the ability to tip everyone in the world without having to use a bank, a payment card, or government permission,

Epic Games founder and chief executive Tim Sweeney said Apple must be stopped.

Apple must be stopped. https://t.co/DTCcG0LgVp

— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) June 26, 2023

In May, the developers M2E-project STEPN added the option for direct payments via Apple Pay for iOS devices.

In the same month, the blockchain game Axie Infinity became available in the App Store. For now, the app can be downloaded only in Argentina, Colombia, Peru, Mexico, Venezuela, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam.