iPhone app stuck in "Removed from sale"

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Level 1

4 points

iPhone app stuck in "Removed from sale"

Hi,

We removed version 1.0 of our app from the App Store due to a critical bug. But when 1.01 was successfully reviewed and approved for sale, it was immediately marked as "Removed from sale" as well, and there doesn't seem to be any way to change it back.

Does anyone know a way to undo the "Remove from sale"? I contacted Apple Support a week ago but haven't heard back.

Many thanks for any suggestions,
Mike

Posted on Sep 29, 2008 6:32 PM

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Answer 1

dodeca Author

Level 1

4 points

Sep 30, 2008 8:15 AM in response to dodeca

Maybe I can help other people to avoid falling into this trap. Here's exactly what happened:

1. We submitted v1.0 of our app, which was approved for sale.

2. We realized there was a critical error in v1.0, so we removed it from sale and uploaded v1.01 (which contained a fix). At this point iTunes Connect showed both versions of our app: v1.0 (Developer removed from sale) and v1.01 (In Review).

3. We received an email telling us that v1.01 had been approved for sale. But in iTunes Connect, v1.0 had disappeared and v1.01 was now listed as "Developer removed from sale." It's as if v1.01 replaced v1.0 and inherited its status.

Hope this helps someone, somewhere,
Mike

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Answer 2

dodeca Author

Level 1

4 points

Oct 15, 2008 8:58 PM in response to dodeca

The solution: in the pricing page, re-select the countries where you would like the app to be sold. This will force the app back into Ready for Sale.

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Answer 3

bhearn

Level 1

0 points

Oct 16, 2008 1:35 PM in response to dodeca

I'm in the middle of the same issue. I was already aware of how to turn back on "ready for sale".

But earlier I had a problem even submitting my fixed version. Once you've removed your app from sale, there's no way to submit a new version! Finally I figured I'd re-enable sales for Luxembourg only, then edit the app description to tell people not to download it. But then I discovered, after uploading the new version, that I could disable sales again and keep the new version in review.

I'm very unhappy with how this has gone. First, I had a stable version up, 2.0. I submitted 2.0.1, which had a very obvious, very bad bug, that somehow crept in at the last minute, and I missed. I would have thought that Apple's review process would have caught it, but no.

So -- the new app goes live, and I start getting lots of 1-star reviews. For an app with a 4.8+ average. Ouch. I immediately pull the update, fix the problem, and try to contact Apple. Can they please restore 2.0 to the store, or expedite reviewing 2.0.2? Four days later, no response. Several emails, and one phone conversation with a promise they would call me back. Very infuriating. Meanwhile more than 30,000 of my users are stuck with a broken version. And 2.0.2 is still in review.

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Answer 4

Oct 17, 2008 9:09 AM in response to bhearn

So we conclude that

1. If an app has no bugs, it takes more than 3 weeks to approve, and you get an email saying nothing except it is taking extra time.

2. If an app has fatal bugs obvious to anyone running it, it is approved immediately.

3. If you upload a fix for the app that has the fatal bugs, goto step 1.

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Answer 5

Oct 23, 2008 3:45 PM in response to bhearn

sooooo... do you know if your existing customers will get the new, not available for sale update even though nobody new can buy it?

I ask because I did my version 2 release as a new app, with a simultaneous update to my version 1.x -- the intention being to allow my old customers to update to the new binary. My new version is radically different in look, feel and under the hood so it really is "new". But I want to take care of my early adopters.

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