iphone - App Name Expiry on iTunes Connect

Question

Apple in iTunes Connect Developer Guide says:

App Name Expiry

Once you have created your app, and it is in the state Prepare For Upload or Waiting For Upload, you will have 180 days (6 months) from your creation date in iTunes Connect, to deliver a binary to Apple. If you do not deliver a binary before the 180-day deadline, your app will be deleted from iTunes Connect. As a result of this deletion, your app name will be able to be used by another developer and you cannot reuse the app name, SKU or Bundle ID. See the Deleting an App section of this guide to learn more about the ramifications of App Delete.

1. What's the meaning of "deliver a binary"? The app should be uploaded and approved in 180 days or just uploaded for review?
2. Is it possible to upload a preliminary binary and set the release date in the future (Availability Date setting within Rights and Pricing), so that before that date I can upload the final binary of my app?

Answer 1

1. Deliver a binary - this is the zipped and compiled version of your app. This needs to be submitted for approval to apple.

2. Yes it is, but if you mess apple about then I don't know if they'll like it too much.

Basically the rules and what you're experiencing are there in order to stop people doing what you're doing, which is basically name squatting. Make the app, submit to itunes connect, upload the binary, get into the apple store. Don't just sit on names without an app, its not fair on the real developers trying to get real apps out there.

Answer 2

I worked around this by preparing a version of my app that was good enough to be approved by Apple, even though it wasn't where I wanted it to be yet for the first release. I submitted it just before the 180 day deadline but set a future release date on the Rights and Pricing tab in iTunes Connect. Apple approved the binary and I continued working on the app with no further warnings about the name expiration. I was even able to move the release date further into the future to give myself more time.

I don't know what would have happened if my submission had been rejected by Apple or if I had rejected it myself. That might have been okay, but I preferred to play it safe and submit something that met all the review guidelines.

Now I'm still not ready for a public release, but ready for beta testing. I submitted my latest version for review and Apple approved that, too. At this point, even though the app still isn't publicly available, I can generate promo codes and give them to beta testers and they can download the app from the App Store using the promo codes. In my case this is better than using up more of the 100 devices available in my developer account. The trade-off is that each beta version I want to share has to go through the Apple review process.

Anyway, setting your release date in the future does let you meet the 180-day upload deadline without releasing something before you're ready. When you're ready to release, you can submit your final version, make sure it gets approved, then move the release date to the desired date.

Answer 3

Well most of us (fellow developers!!) will be happy to know that the grace period of 120 days has now been increased to 180 days which is roughly 6 months.

The following quote has been taken from iTunes Connect Guide

App Name Expiry

After creating your app and it is in the state Prepare For Upload or Waiting For Upload, you have 180 days (6 months) from your creation date in iTunes Connect to deliver a binary to Apple. If you do not deliver a binary before the 180-day deadline, your app is deleted from iTunes Connect. As a result of this deletion, your app name can be used by another developer and you cannot reuse the app name, SKU or bundle ID. See “Deleting an App” (page 90) to learn more about the ramifications of App Delete.`

Answer 4

Well, MisterX claims that once you upload a real binary, you can then reject it and never hear from Apple again. My company has had issues that prevent me from uploading their app (which I did) and I need to buy some time. The app uses their registered TM name so if I lose it I'm in big trouble!!!

Lets home MisterX was telling the truth!

EDIT: well, in fact, I did do an upload of the app once (you have to get all your permissions in order, certificates, etc and the binary has to pass the internal tests on using only legit frameworks etc). I immediately cancelled the binary, and I was able to keep my app name past until we were able to post it over 180 days after getting the name). This was as of May 2012 so YMMV.

Answer 5

iTunes App Name reservations no longer expire.

http://blog.salsitasoft.com/apples-new-app-name-reservation-policy/

I lost one of my app before and I can't take its name again. But now I have too many apps that are waiting in iTunes Connect about 1 year.

Answer 6

As guide says:

If you do not deliver a binary before the 120-day deadline, your app will be deleted from iTunes Connect

You must upload your binary for the application (ipa file) in maximum 120 days since you added in iTunes.

This binary will be the subject for approval. You cannot send one binary as a test one, and later the final binary. It will be rejected.

Answer 7

1) It should be just uploaded for review. Normally review takes about 7-10 days.

2) Yes it is possible to control the release date of the app. You can select it when you login to itunes connect and create a new app. One of the fields there asks for release date.

Also if you app is approved(Test binary in your case) you can also upload a newer version for the approved app (which can be your final binary) However the approval lies wholly on the review team at Apple.

Answer 8

1. I don't know this precisely, but by my experience and context, I think it means just uploading.

2. If you want to upload another binary, you should reject binary yourself and re-upload new binary, that means you should wait once more for review.

Answer 9

From what I understand, you just have to have the app uploaded. And if you really read exactly what the iTunes Connect Guide says (look at the wording), that 180 timer is only counting the number of days that your app is in either the Preparing For Upload or Waiting For Upload state. Take a look:

After creating your app and it is in the state Prepare For Upload or Waiting For Upload, you have 180 days (6 months) from your creation date in iTunes Connect to deliver a binary to Apple....

So a solution would be to upload whatever binary you have right now, then wait for the status to change to Waiting For Review. Once that happens, developer-reject the binary. Leave it in the Developer Rejected state until you're ready to re-upload. The reason I say this is because putting it back into Prepare For Upload or Waiting For Upload might start the 180 day timer again (though I'm not sure).

Play it safe. When you upload your binary upload something that would pass review and have a decent standing on the AppStore (even if it means "hiding" some features).

Let's hope this works! I have three days left before the 180 day deadline and I'm about to upload. I'll post to confirm if it works.